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CSTO countries call for meaningful dialogue with Taliban — Lavrov

According to the Russian foreign minister, threats continue to emanate from the territory of Afghanistan as cells of the Islamic State and al-Qaeda terrorist groups are still present there

ALMATY, June 21. /TASS/. The member countries of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) agree that it is necessary to establish a constant and project-oriented dialogue with the government formed by the Taliban movement (banned in Russia), Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told reporters after a meeting of the CSTO Council of Foreign Ministers.

"In general, we advocate establishing a more stable, continuous and substantive dialogue, which is aimed at implementing real projects, with the Taliban’s government that in fact holds control over the country," the minister said. "This was the prevailing opinion during the discussions about which I am telling you today."

According to Lavrov, threats continue to emanate from the territory of Afghanistan as cells of the Islamic State and al-Qaeda terrorist groups (outlawed in Russia) are still present there.

"The Taliban’s government is battling with those terrorist groups, and we consider it fundamentally crucial to help in this fight," Lavrov said.

Tags

Foreign policy Sergey Lavrov Afghanistan CSTO

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