SCO supports stepping up fight against extremism in Afghanistan – Lavrov

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has spoken out in favor of stepping up activities to fight extremism and prevent conflict situations in Afghanistan, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told reporters on the sidelines of the SCO foreign ministers’ meeting. “We are all concerned over the strengthening position of extremists, first and foremost, members of the so-called Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) who are coming to the country from Iraq and Syria, trying to gain a foothold in Afghanistan,” he said. Lavrov also said that the participants of the meeting in Beijing had agreed there was a need to begin talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban movement in the near future, TASS said.