Russia is set to remove the Taliban from its list of banned terrorist organizations, three years after they regained control in Afghanistan, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported on Monday.
Moscow has maintained relations with the Taliban for years, conducting multiple rounds of talks and increasing trade with Afghanistan despite international sanctions.
“Kazakhstan has recently taken the decision, which we are also going to take, to remove them from the list of terrorist organizations,” RIA Novosti quoted Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Kazakhstan removed the Taliban from its list of banned organizations at the end of 2023.
The move could further boost diplomacy between Russia and Afghanistan, but would fall short of an official recognition of the Taliban government and what it calls the “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.”
The Taliban took power in 2021 from a US-backed government, imposing a strict interpretation of Islamic law that effectively excludes women from public life.
Lavrov stated that Russia’s decision acknowledges the current realities.
“They are the real power. We are not indifferent to Afghanistan. And above all, our Central Asian allies are not indifferent,” Lavrov said.
Russia also invited Taliban representatives to its prominent Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum, according to state media.
The event was previously viewed as a key element of Russia’s economic relations with the West.
Russia has long maintained ties with the Taliban
In 2018, the head of US forces in Afghanistan alleged that Moscow was supplying weapons to the group, an accusation that Moscow denied at the time.
The Taliban has been designated a terrorist organization in Russia since 2003.
Moscow itself has a complex history with Afghanistan, having fought a decade-long war against guerrilla mujahideen fighters in the 1980s to support a Kremlin-backed government.
