Russia open to cooperation with EU, US and NATO on Afghan issue top diplomat – TASS

MOSCOW, October 8. /TASS/. Moscow is ready for cooperation with Washington, Brussels and NATO on the situation in Afghanistan, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated on Friday at a meeting with the Association of European Businesses members.

"We are open to cooperation with the US, the EU and NATO, because I believe that the NATO countries should certainly bear the main share of responsibility for Afghanistans reconstruction," the top diplomat said.

Lavrov emphasized Moscows firm stance "against the transfer of military facilities from Afghanistan or the deployment of new military infrastructure in the Central Asian republics" in order to attack Afghanistan if necessary. "These countries can become targets for terrorists," the Russian foreign minister explained.

"Completely different methods are required in this fight. And, of course, those who cooperated with these specific people should be responsible for the flows of refugees. Currently, many are trying to persuade Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Kazakhstan to take refugees for a couple of months, explaining that they need to issue documents for them. If they have been cooperating with Western countries, the US and others for many years, is it really necessary to draw up documents for two months? This is not really true," Lavrov stated.

The foreign minister pointed out that the stability of its Central Asian neighbors was very significant for Moscow, noting that the Russian capital would host talks on Afghanistan soon. "This is a step towards the preparation of a global conference, which is already being announced. The reconstruction of Afghanistan is likely to be addressed, and we have a lot of reasons for cooperation," Lavrov said.

On Wednesday, Russia's special presidential envoy to Afghanistan, Director of the Foreign Ministry's Second Asian Department Zamir Kabulov announced that Russia will invite the Talibans (outlawed in Russia) representatives to take part in talks on Afghanistan, which will be held on October 20 in Moscow.

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Russia open to cooperation with EU, US and NATO on Afghan issue top diplomat - TASS