Russia’s Foreign Ministry announced on Friday that the decision to remove the Afghan Taliban from the country’s list of terrorist organizations had been made “at the highest level,” according to the state-run TASS news agency. Zamir Kabulov, President Vladimir Putin’s special representative on Afghanistan, stated that the decision still requires legal procedures to be fully implemented.
This move comes as part of Russia’s growing engagement with the Taliban, which it has been building ties with since the group seized control of Afghanistan in August 2021 following the U.S. withdrawal. Despite these efforts, the Taliban is still officially classified as a terrorist organization in Russia, having been added to the list in 2003.
President Putin, in July, described the Taliban as an ally in the fight against terrorism. However, no country, including Russia, has officially recognized the Taliban as Afghanistan’s legitimate government. China and the UAE have accepted Taliban-appointed ambassadors, marking some level of informal recognition.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov echoed the importance of continued dialogue with Kabul, noting that resolving Afghanistan’s issues is impossible without its participation. He emphasized the need for pragmatic relations with the current Afghan leadership and praised their efforts to curb drug production and combat the Islamic State (IS) group, which remains outlawed in Russia.
Lavrov also urged the United States to return confiscated Afghan assets and called on the West to take responsibility for Afghanistan’s post-conflict reconstruction. He reaffirmed Russia’s commitment to providing humanitarian aid, including food and essential goods, to Afghanistan.
Russia’s history with Afghanistan is marked by its 1979 invasion to support a pro-Moscow government, which ended in a decade-long conflict. Militant groups with Afghan links have since continued to pose security threats to Russia and its neighbors, with a March 2024 attack claimed by IS killing 145 people at a concert hall near Moscow.
Removing the Taliban from the terrorist list would be a significant step in Russia’s approach to normalizing relations with Afghanistan.
