Putin: The Taliban are Russia's allies in the fight against terrorism
Russian President Vladimir Putin called the ruling radical Islamist Taliban movement in Afghanistan an ally of Russia in the fight against terrorism. At the same time, he did not mention that the movement was officially banned in Russia, being included in the list of terrorist organizations.
"In general, we must proceed from the fact that the Taliban controls the power in the country. And in this sense, the Taliban are certainly allies for us in the fight against terrorism," the TASS agency quotes Putin. The Russian president answered journalists' questions in Astana, where the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization ended.
The Taliban are fighting an armed struggle against the Islamic State group (also recognized as terrorist and banned in Russia). It was the Afghan wing of this group "Vilayat Khorasan" that claimed responsibility for the terrorist attack in the "Crocus City Hall" near Moscow, in which 144 people were killed. At the same time, representatives of the Russian authorities in connection with this terrorist attack usually talk about the Ukrainian or Western "trace" and not about radical Islamist organizations. It is not known whether the Taliban provided any assistance to Russia in the investigation of the terrorist attack.
The Taliban government is not recognized by Russia, as well as other countries of the world, but their representatives are regularly invited to Russia for various events. The Russian Foreign Ministry recently noted that they are in favor of removing the status of a terrorist organization from the Taliban.
Most of the questions asked to Putin, however, concerned the war in Ukraine. The Russian president said that he did not support the idea of a ceasefire until Ukraine fulfills a number of conditions. "We need to ensure that the opposite side agrees to take steps that are irreversible and acceptable to the Russian Federation," Putin said in particular. Previously, he called Ukraine's recognition of Russia's annexation of four of its regions and Crimea, as well as its refusal to join NATO, as such conditions.
Putin also reiterated the opinion that the "ruling elite" is allegedly in power in Ukraine illegally. He also called it meaningless to appeal to the Verkhovna Rada, which he had previously called a legitimate authority. Putin also said that he welcomed the efforts of the mediators between Russia and Ukraine, but considers it unlikely to achieve peace agreements with their help. At the same time, Russia, according to Putin, is "seriously" about the words of Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump that he wants to stop the war in Ukraine, but Putin himself is not familiar with his specific proposals.
Putin also confirmed that the industry in Russia has already been given instructions related to the production of shorter and medium-range missiles. Putin said that it could be resumed last week, also stating that these missiles could be deployed in various regions of the world.
Orban at Zelensky's
The day before, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, at a meeting in Kiev with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, asked to consider the possibility of a ceasefire before possible peace negotiations with Russia. According to Orban, this can speed up the negotiation process. Zelensky did not directly reject this proposal the day before, but mentioned the peace plan of Ukraine itself - the so-called peace formula, which provides for the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian territory. On Thursday, in an interview with Bloomberg, he spoke more clearly, saying that a ceasefire without a clear plan of what would follow would mean a freeze, not an end to the conflict.
Earlier, representatives of the Ukrainian authorities have repeatedly stated the unacceptability of "freezing" the conflict or ceasefire on the current front line. Both Kiev and Moscow say that the truce will only allow the opposite side to rearm and then resume hostilities.
Source: https://www.svoboda.org/a/putin-taliby---soyuzniki-rossii-v-borjbe-s-terrorizmom/33022046.html