The second meeting of the Regional Contact Group for Afghanistan, known as the Moscow Format, was held on Saturday in Tehran, the capital of Iran. Iranian media reported that the representatives of Iran, Russia, China and Pakistan attended the meeting. At the meeting, the Director-General of the South Asia Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran Seyyed Rasoul […]

A Taliban government delegation is taking part in the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, after a proposal by Russian ministries to remove the Islamic movement from the list of banned terrorist organizations. When a delegation of Afghanistan’s Taliban-led government first visited the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in 2022, it was the topic of much talk — not just in […]

The risk of penetration of radical ideology from Afghanistan into the member countries of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) is increasing, said Rustam Emomali, chairman of Tajikistan’s upper chamber of parliament. Addressing the Council of the Parliament Assembly of the Collective Security Treaty Organization in Almaty, Emomali said that more than 1,000 religious madrassas have been established in Afghanistan, […]

Moscow Format Contact Group on Afghanistan has been convened for this week where discussions will take place on issues relating to the country, Russia’s special presidential representative for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov confirmed Tuesday. Kabulov said this meeting will take place on Saturday, in Tehran, ahead of the planned Doha meeting later this month. “We have discussed with representatives of the […]

Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman, chief of Pakistan’s Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) political party, on Sunday criticized the government of Pakistan for blaming Afghanistan over attacks. Speaking at a rally in Punjab province, Rehman pointed out the irony of the government of Afghanistan being questioned over terrorism within Pakistan, and asked, “If terrorists are infiltrating from across the Afghanistan border, then where are you […]

The President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said Monday that his country has removed the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan [IEA] from its terrorist list in order to develop economic ties with Afghanistan. Speaking at a meeting with parliament speakers from countries of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), Tokayev said: “Kazakhstan has removed the Taliban from the list of terrorists proceeding […]

An article published by one of the official websites of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA, i.e., the Afghan Taliban) eulogizes Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour, the second Emir-ul-Momineen and successor to Afghan Taliban founder Mullah Mohammad Omar, crediting him with building the military and administrative structure of the IEA. The article, “Most Significant Accomplishments Of Martyr Emir-ul-Momineen Mullah Akhtar Muhammad […]

Last month, Afghanistan was hit by yet another major natural disaster. There was significant flooding in the northern provinces of Badakhshan, Baghlan, and Takhar. Estimates vary but it is thought that hundreds of people died and thousands were displaced from their homes. This latest catastrophe comes on the heels of a series of earthquakes in western parts of the country […]

The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) holds a firm grip on Afghanistan which is crucial for Russia, Zamir Kabulov, Russia’s special presidential representative for Afghanistan and Director of the Foreign Ministry’s Second Asia Department, said. “We believe that this government is holding consistent control over the country. This is fundamentally important for us,” Kabulov said on the Rossiya-24 television channel, […]

The Ministry of Energy of Kyrgyzstan plans to start electricity exports through Afghanistan to Pakistan under the CASA-1000 project next year. The $1.2bn CASA-1000 regional power project is designed to interconnect the power grids of the four participating countries, allowing for hydro power-generated electricity to be exported from Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to Afghanistan and Pakistan. Based on Kyrgyzstan’s plan, about […]