Afghanistan’s neighbors to demand that Washington foot the bill for the war-torn country’s post-conflict reconstruction; Brazilian President Lula’s visit to China should help revive ties among BRICS nations and boost their further integration; and Saudi Arabia seeks to persuade Middle Eastern countries to reconcile with Syria. These stories topped Friday’s newspaper headlines across Russia.
Afghanistan’s neighbors ready to send Washington a bill for damages
The US and its allies should bear the main financial burden for Afghanistan’s post-conflict reconstruction. According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, this was the conclusion of a ministerial conference of Afghanistan’s neighboring countries, which took place in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, Kommersant writes.
Akramzhon Nematov, First Deputy Director of the Institute of Strategic and Regional Studies under the President of Uzbekistan, believes that facilitating Afghanistan’s social and economic development is the key to fighting terrorism in the country. This is what Afghanistan’s neighbors are especially interested in.
The neighboring countries are ready to assist Afghanistan, ruled by the Taliban (outlawed in Russia), provided that the movement respects women’s rights and creates an inclusive government, Vedomosti notes.
The interest of Russia and China in the Afghan issue is understandable. After pulling out of the country, the US left all of the problems to Afghanistan’s neighbors, Higher School of Economics Professor Andrey Kazantsev points out. However, although Moscow and China are satisfied with the US withdrawal, it’s not quite clear what to do with Afghanistan. The Taliban’s ability to make decisions is questionable amid the split within the movement. As for calls for lifting sanctions, they will remain unanswered given Washington’s poor relationship with both Russia and China. The same goes for the Taliban’s requests that Afghanistan’s assets frozen in the US be returned to them.
The Samarkand meeting marks another effort to reach a regional consensus on Afghanistan, Head of the Center for Contemporary Afghan Studies Andrey Serenko noted. The situation in Afghanistan keeps getting worse and the neighboring countries have to react to it. The crisis will continue to deepen until changes start taking place in Afghanistan, Serenko said. The changes may be caused by struggles between various Taliban factions and the victory of a faction more inclined to listen to recommendations from the outside. Other options include the strengthening of the anti-Taliban National Resistance Front of Afghanistan or the Islamic State (outlawed in Russia). In the latter case, the military would have to interfere in Afghanistan’s affairs instead of diplomats, Serenko concluded.
