Afghanistan must be prevented from collapsing

Moscow | Russian President Vladimir Putin called on Friday to prevent the “collapse” of Afghanistan, which is now in the hands of the Taliban, and not to allow “terrorists” to leave the country, including by pretending to be refugees.

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During a joint press conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Moscow, Putin criticized the “irresponsible” Western policy aimed at “imposing foreign values” on Afghans.

And Putin said again: “We must stop (…) this desire to build democracy in other countries on foreign models, without taking into account historical, national or religious characteristics, and with complete disregard for the traditions under which other peoples live.”

He added: “I think this is the lesson learned from Afghanistan.”

The Russian president stressed that the Taliban had taken control of “almost all of Afghanistan” and that this was “a reality to be reckoned with, not allowing the collapse of the Afghan state.”

Mr. Putin also considered it “important to prevent the infiltration of terrorists into the territory of countries neighboring ‘Afghanistan’, including by pretending to be refugees.”

Russia, one of the countries that did not evacuate its embassy in Kabul after the arrival of the Taliban, Tuesday, confirmed that the latter is sending “positive signals” in terms of freedoms, power-sharing and disposing of “civilized” material in Iraq. Afghan capital.

Moscow, which considers that the Afghan crisis is the result of a “hasty exit” and even the “escape” of US forces, supports the opening of a “national dialogue” in Afghanistan “with the participation of all political, ethnic and sectarian forces” in this country.

“We must do everything possible to unite our efforts to support the Afghan people, normalize the situation in this country and establish good-neighborly relations,” Putin said on Friday.