MOSCOW, March 18. /TASS/. Moscow calls on Washington and representatives of the Taliban (outlawed in Russia) to remain committed to the peace agreement signed by the parties in Doha last February, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday in his opening remarks at a meeting of the expanded "troika" on the Afghan peace process.

He noted that the "troika" format, that is, Russia, China and the United States, to which Pakistan later joined, had been established in order to create favorable conditions for launching intra-Afghan peace talks and "consolidating international assistance to Afghanistan at the post-conflict stage." "Beginning its work in 2019, that mechanism has played a tangible positive role in facilitating negotiations between the United States and the Taliban, which culminated in the signing of the respective agreement of February 29, 2020. We call on both sides to remain committed to the provisions of that document backed by UN Security Council Resolution 2513," he said.

On February 29, 2020, the previous US administration and the Taliban signed a peace deal in Doha. The United States, its allies and the coalition pledged to withdraw all troops from Afghanistan within 14 months. The Taliban, for its part, guaranteed that it would not use Afghan soil for actions that posed a threat to the security of the United States and its allies. The meetings between Taliban members and representatives of the Afghan government, which began after that, have so far not resulted in drawing up the agenda for peace talks, with the process coming to a standstill.

On Thursday, Moscow is hosting a meeting of the ‘expanded troika’ on a peaceful settlement for Afghanistan at the level of special envoys. The meeting is being attended by Afghan state emissaries and Taliban members. Qatar’s delegation was invited to the consultations as well.