In an exclusive interview with The Hindu, Zamir Kabulov, Russia’s special presidential envoy for Afghanistan, and head of the second Asia department in the Russian foreign ministry, pointed out that “New Delhi’s policy of avoiding any engagement with the Taliban has had its day, especially in view of the upcoming launch of intra-Afghan talks and eventual transformation of the Taliban movement into an influential legal political force in Afghanistan.”
Mr. Kabulov’s remarks follow the advocacy of U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation, Zalmay Khalilzad, that India and Taliban should hold direct talks as stated during an exclusive interview earlier with The Hindu.
Mr. Kabulov, a former ambassador to Afghanistan, fully endorsed the February 29, peace agreement between Washington and Taliban, which was signed in Doha. “We commend the signing of an agreement between the U.S. and the Taliban movement that took place in Doha on February 29, 2020, and are convinced that it paves the way for finding a lasting settlement of the situation in Afghanistan.”
The veteran Russian diplomat also spotlighted that the “Taliban movement has changed”.
“There are multiple reasons for that. First and foremost, the Taliban has had enough time to learn from its mistakes. As we can see, it has abandoned some radical and Jihadist principles.”
The senior Russian diplomat said that Taliban’s policy of “ good neighbourhood relations” was behind the recent feelers sent by the movement to open communication channels with India, and the possibility of its willingness to accept Kashmir as India’s internal affair. “I doubt that it is a tactical man oeuvre (by Taliban); rather, it is a strategic vision,” Mr. Kabulov observed.
