DUSHANBE, 03.09.2021 (NIAT Khovar) – Russia has no intention to serve as a mediator at negotiations between the Taliban and other political forces in Afghanistan, said Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

«We have long urged the Taliban and other ethnic political groups in Afghanistan to negotiate for the creation of an inclusive transitional government,» he said.

«Currently we have no plans for serving as a mediator at such talks. To my knowledge, nobody has such plans, either,» he added.

He pointed out that everybody was interested to see the Taliban and other ethnic and political actors in Afghanistan achieve unanimity regarding the messages they send to the Western countries, China and the Central Asian states.

Lavrov remarked that as far as resistance in Panjshir was concerned, the special role belongs to Russia’s allies in Tajikistan.

«In the Panjshir Valley, the Afghan Tajiks are holding talks with the Taliban’s central government. I hope that these talks will eventually produce a negotiated solution, and not be disrupted, and that the threats of a resumption of hostilities will not materialize,» he stressed.

The Taliban movement launched a large-scale operation for the control of Afghanistan after last spring when the US declared its intention to pull out its forces. On August 15, President Ashraf Ghani stepped down and fled the country. The Taliban entered Kabul without encountering resistance. In the meantime, its opponents in Panjshir warned that they would fight back. Ahmad Massoud, son of the late powerful field commander Ahmad Shah Massoud (1953-2001) is leading the resistance against the Taliban. Afghanistan’s former vice-president, Amrullah Saleh, who had proclaimed himself as the acting head of state, issued a call to support Massoud.