Dmitry Zhirnov in an unexpected comment said that Kabul is safer under Taliban rule than it was under previous authorities.
The Russian ambassador to Afghanistan Dmitry Zhirnov in an unexpected comment said that Kabul is safer under Taliban rule than it was under previous authorities. " Taliban had made Kabul safer in the first 24 hours than it had been under the previous authorities", he said. He is scheduled to hold talks with the Taliban today to discuss the security of Russian citizens and embassy personnel.
Zhrinov's statement came soon after Moscow's envoy to the UN talked about interacting with the Taliban "irrespective of the evolving situation and their specific actions" in Afghanistan.
"According to our report, the Taliban has already sought to bring public order and have also confirmed security guarantees for civilians and for the foreign diplomatic mission staff," Russia’s Permanent Representative Vassily Nebenzia told the UN Security Council meeting on Afghanistan, convened for the second time in just over 10 days under India's current UNSC Presidency for August.
"We trust that in the current circumstances, the security of diplomatic staff and the UN presence in Afghanistan will be insured and their institutions will enjoy immunity," he said.
"As regards our future official steps, official steps regarding the Taliban, we will interact with them, irrespective of the evolving situation, and their specific actions," Nebenzia said.
Nebenzia also blamed 'drugs' as one of the catalysts in terrorism. He, however, voiced concern by the ongoing presence of terrorist threats in Afghanistan, including ISIL-K (the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Khorasan Province) whose "terrorist activities are likely to spill across Afghanistan's borders and thus will threaten the security of neighboring countries in Central Asia."
