Moscow hosts consultations on Afghanistan attended by govt, Taliban delegates

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Friday that Afghanistan should not be used for geopolitical games. Russia supports the preservation of a united and indivisible Afghanistan, he said opening the second session of the Moscow-based consultations on Afghanistan. “No one should think in terms of geopolitical games that may result in another transformation of Afghanistan into a field for competition between external players with drastic consequences both for the Afghans and their neighbors,” the minister said. The consultations between deputy foreign ministers and special representatives is attended for the first time by a delegation of the Taliban movement, TASS reports. An employee from the US Embassy in Moscow will also take part in the event as an observer.