Russia and the Taliban: here’s why Putin wants to get closer to Afghanistan’s current rulers

By Intigam Mamedov, Postdoctoral research fellow in social sciences, Northumbria University, Newcastle

Russia is currently considering taking the Taliban off its list of terrorist organisations, officials have indicated.

While no final decision has yet been taken, one sign of their increasingly cordial relationship is the Taliban’s invitation to an international economic forum being held in Kazan, Russia, in May. The Kremlin has opened up discussions with the Taliban before, and Russia was…

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