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Russian diplomat slams claims about alleged Russian support for Taliban

A Russian diplomat denies reports that Moscow supports the Taliban

Russian Foreign Ministry Mikhail Japaridze/TASS

Russian Foreign Ministry

© Mikhail Japaridze/TASS

NEW DELHI, January 18. /TASS/. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov denied reports on Thursday that Moscow supports the Taliban as absolute speculation not substantiated by any proof.

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Russia is concerned over the current situation in Afghanistan, the diplomat said at the Raisina Dialogue international conference.

"There are a lot of talks about the possibility of Russia’s assistance to the Taliban," he said, adding that there is "no evidence whatsoever with regard to Russia’s assistance to the Taliban, these are pure speculations, absolutely groundless."

The diplomat noted that Moscow has not received any proof from the Afghan government on Russia’s alleged support for the Taliban.

"Of course we also have periodical contacts [with the Taliban], which focus on two items: the security of Russian citizens in Afghanistan and issues how we can facilitate to let the Afghan government and the opposition forces sit down and talk about peaceful reconciliation."

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