Kabul slams trilateral talks on Afghanistan in Moscow

By Shadi Khan Saif

KABUL, Afghanistan

The Afghan government has voiced concerns over trilateral talks between Russia, China and Pakistan on Afghanistan in Moscow without any representation from Kabul.

Afghan officials described the foreign secretary-level talks in the Russian capital on Tuesday as “illegitimate and dubious”. The Foreign Ministry said an explanation had been sought from the Russian diplomatic mission over the issue.

Shakib Mustaghni, a spokesman for ministry, told journalists in Kabul that such talks were meaningless. “Even if such talks are organized with a good will, it cannot yield any substantial results because no one from the Afghan side is there to brief the participants about the latest ground realities,” Mustaghni said.

A day earlier, the country’s parliament held a debate over the issue during which lawmakers expressed concerns over what they called “meddling in Afghanistan’s internal affairs”.

Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi, house speaker, urged the Kabul government to seek clarification from Russia in this regard.

Meanwhile, the Russian Foreign Ministry in a statement said that participants of the trilateral meeting had voiced concern over the worsening security situation in Afghanistan and the increased presence of Daesh there.

All three sides agreed on supporting the national consensus process in Afghanistan, the statement said.

It added that Russia, China and Pakistan would "welcome" presence of the Afghan side during consultations.

The talks on Afghanistan in Moscow come exactly 37 years after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in December 1979. The country is still reeling from the destruction that began nearly four decades ago.

Last month, Alexander Mantytskiy, Russian ambassador to Afghanistan, and Zamir Kabulov, special representative of Russia in Afghanistan-Pakistan, caused an uproar in Kabul when they acknowledged ties between the Taliban and Russia.

The diplomats claimed contacts with the Taliban were only for the security of the Russian diplomatic mission in Afghanistan.