MOSCOW, September 12. /TASS/. Russia is looking into the possibility of providing humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, although no practical agreements on the issue have been reached so far, Russian Ambassador to Kabul Dmitry Zhirnov said on the YouTube channel Soloviov Live.
"They are expecting humanitarian aid from the international community in general. We are also studying the possibility. Once the issue is solved, I can make an announcement on that," he said.
At the same time, the ambassador said that so far he saw "no requests directed specifically at Russia," but Afghanistan is ready for economic interaction with Moscow.
"They saw that our embassy was among the few - in fact, only China, Pakistan and Iran remained - who did not flee and faced the reality. They appreciate that," Zhirnov said.
In his words, the government and the people of Afghanistan are now focusing on rebuilding the country rather than on geopolitical agenda.
"Afghanistan has been hit by a crisis, which began to brew long ago. Right now, they need the new government to somehow stabilize the situation. They are introspective and busy preventing it all from falling apart, preventing the crisis - made worse by the West’s decision to freeze three quarters of the budget - from becoming even more profound," the Russian diplomat added.
The Taliban movement (outlawed in Russia) launched a large-scale operation to regain control over Afghanistan after the United States announced the withdrawal of its military personnel from the country. On August 15, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani stepped down and fled the country, while the Taliban forces swept into Kabul, meeting no resistance. On September 8, the Taliban formed an interim government, comprised only of the movement’s members.