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Taliban welcomes Russia’s plans to remove them from list of terrorists - spokesman

Taliban seeks positive relations with the international community based on the principle of reciprocity, Abdul Qahar Balkhi, spokesperson of the Afghan Foreign Ministry in the interim government said

CAIRO, October 25. /TASS/. The Taliban movement (outlawed in Russia) welcomes remarks by Russian President Vladimir Putin about possibility to exclude the group from the list of terrorist organizations, Abdul Qahar Balkhi, spokesperson of the Afghan Foreign Ministry in the interim government of the country, said on Sunday.

"Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan welcomes remarks by President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, regarding removal of names of IEA leaders from blacklist," he wrote on Twitter.

"As the chapter of war has come to an end, so too must world countries bring a positive change in their relation and approach towards Afghanistan. We seek positive relations with the international community based on the principle of reciprocity," the Taliban spokesman tweeted.

On October 21, speaking at a meeting of the International Valdai Club, President Vladimir Putin said that the removal of the Taliban movement (outlawed in Russia) from the list of terrorist organizations is possible, but at the same time he stressed that this must happen at the level of the United Nations.

"All of us expect that these people, the Taliban, who are undoubtedly in control of the situation in Afghanistan will ensure that the situation develop in a positive fashion," Putin said.

After the United States announced the pullout of its troops from Afghanistan this past spring, the Taliban radical militant group (outlawed in Russia - TASS) launched a large-scale operation to establish control over that country. On August 15, President of Afghanistan, Ashraf Ghani, fled the country, and the radicals swept into Kabul without encountering any resistance. On September 6, the Taliban declared its establishment of control over all of Afghanistan, and on September 7 announced the line-up of the interim cabinet, whose legitimacy has not yet been recognized by any country.

Israeli-Palestinian conflict

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