MOSCOW, August 3. /TASS/. Afghanistan's military-political movement, the Taliban (outlawed in Russia), has its own vision of the country's future and is conducting combat operations more successfully than any other forces, which means it will have to be reckoned with when launching substantive and productive intra-Afghan negotiations, Russian presidential envoy for Afghanistan, director of the Foreign Ministry's second Asian department Zamir Kabulov said on Tuesday.
"The Taliban is not a nation, it is the name of a military-political movement. They are Afghans with a different vision of their country's present and future, and they fight in the name of their convictions. Experience shows that they fight better than any of the foreign forces currently present in or already absent from Afghanistan," Kabulov said in an online discussion at the Alexander Gorchakov Public Diplomacy Fund. "This circumstance will have to be reckoned with."
Kabulov stressed that from the standpoint of credibility and trustworthiness the Taliban was heterogeneous as a movement.
"It is a living organism, just as any organization of this sort. According to our estimates, about two-thirds of this movement, including the top brass, are in the mood for settling the Afghan crisis by political means," Kabulov said. In the meantime, one-third of the militants, including some field commanders, remain radically-minded.
Kabulov urged all parties to the Afghan settlement process "to be pragmatic and be guided first and foremost by the interests of the Afghan people, who are extremely tired of this war."
"Peace is needed, and this peace has a price. We believe that launching meaningful and productive intra-Afghan talks with the aim of forming a future inclusive coalition government would be the optimal solution," Kabulov said. "The group of countries that are most influential on the Afghan field, including Russia, the United States, China and Pakistan, are currently addressing this task. This club is open to a number of other influential players."
US President Joe Biden on April 14 declared his decision to curtail the operation in Afghanistan, which has become the longest foreign military campaign in US history. Against this background the security situation in Afghanistan has worsened, as Taliban militants are stepping up their offensive on multiple fronts.