According to the Defense Minister, drug trafficking and drug production are also a serious problem in Afghanistan
NUR-SULTAN, March 17. /TASS/. The Russian Defense Ministry is concerned about the movement of large groups of terrorists to Afghanistan and other countries. This was stated by Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu in an interview published on Wednesday with the Kazakh news agency Tengrinews.
"What's bothering us? And not just us, the whole region. Large groups of terrorists are moving to different countries, including Afghanistan. ISIL has already appeared there (the outdated name of the terrorist organization "Islamic State" banned in the Russian Federation - approx. TASS), and we are seeing the arrival of those who, first, left Afghanistan for Syria, and plus those who have already come from Syria to another country are added to them, " Shoigu said, answering a question about the situation in Afghanistan.
According to him, drug trafficking and drug production are also a serious problem in Afghanistan. "We all live in this region, in this common territory of ours. Our neighbors and we cannot fail to understand that they are not only neighbors with us, they are neighbors with our closest friends, with our fraternal peoples, with those with whom we have lived together for centuries and, God willing, will continue to live together. Of course, this includes Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan," the Russian Defense Minister explained.
He also spoke about the agreements of the previous US administration, its allies and the coalition to withdraw troops from Afghanistan. "What we are seeing today is such a periodic "leave-stay, stay-go". And this happens in different countries. They seem to be a coalition, each is responsible for its own zone, but with the change of presidents - then "leave", then "stay", - said Shoigu.
"I told my colleagues from the United States, I told my colleagues in the United Kingdom that you should still leave when you are absolutely sure that peaceful life has improved there. And when the local population has something that they can earn, except for drugs. Therefore, it is necessary to give them such an opportunity that they can produce something and sell it, in order to have a normal life, " the head of the Russian Defense Ministry stressed.
On February 29, 2020, the previous US administration and the Taliban (banned in Russia) signed a peace agreement in Doha. The United States, its allies and the coalition have pledged to withdraw all troops from the country within 14 months. The Taliban also guaranteed that they would not use the territory of Afghanistan for actions that pose a threat to the security of the United States and its allies. The subsequent meetings between the Taliban and representatives of the Afghan Government have not yet even led to the development of an agenda for the actual peace talks and have reached an impasse. The new US administration has not yet made a decision on the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan.
