INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday called for Moscow to &build up& relations with the Islamic Emirate government in
Afghanistan.Speaking to senior editors of foreign news agencies on the sidelines of the St Petersburg International Economic Forum, Putin
said: &We have always believed that we need to deal with reality
The Taliban are in power in Afghanistan… We have to build up relations with the Taliban government.&This comes after Russian Foreign
Minister Sergei Lavrov said last week that Moscow planned to take the Islamic Emirate off its list of banned terrorist organizations.&They
are the real power& in Afghanistan, Lavrov said at the time, speaking during a visit by Putin to Uzbekistan in Central Asia.The Islamic
Emirate has been designated a terrorist organization in Russia since 2003.
Abdulmanan Omari, Afghanistan&s acting minister of labor and
social affairs, is meanwhile attending this year&s St
Petersburg International Economic Forum.According to the ministry, Omari left for Russia on Wednesday morning.The post Putin calls for
Russia to ‘build up& ties with Islamic Emirate government first appeared on Ariana News.
