Russia invites China to attend talks on Afghanistan

Chinese Foreign Ministry’s Spokesperson Zhao Lijian has said that the Chinese side has received an invitation from Russia to attend international talks on Afghanistan to be held in Moscow on October 20.

“The Chinese side has received Russia’s invitation. We stand ready to maintain communication and coordination with relevant sides including Russia,” he said during his regular briefing held in Beijing on Friday.

He said that Beijing supported all international efforts that are conducive to promoting peace and stability and gathering consensus in Afghanistan.

Also read: Moscow invites Taliban to Afghanistan talks on October 20

President Vladimir Putin’s special representative on Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov had said that Russia would invite representatives of the Taliban to international talks on Afghanistan that it planned to host in Moscow on October 20.

The representative did not provide further details on the planned talks in comments carried by Russian news agencies.

Moscow hosted an international conference on Afghanistan in March at which Russia, the United States, China and Pakistan released a joint statement calling on the then-warring Afghan sides to reach a peace deal and curb violence.

Also read: Amnesty to Pakistani Taliban — birds and stones

It also called on the Taliban not to launch any offensives in the spring and summer.

Since then, the United States and its allies withdrew their troops after 20 years on the ground, the Taliban seized power in a lightning advance and the previous government collapsed.

Russia is worried about the potential for fallout in the wider region and the possibility of militants infiltrating the former Soviet republics of Central Asia, which Moscow views as its southern defensive buffer.