Shoigu stated in an article published by the Russian newspaper ‘Rossiyskaya Gazeta’: ‘It seems that Afghanistan has a lot of difficult work ahead to achieve stability in the country.’ He added: ‘Russia is ready to assist the Taliban in this area, including through developing cooperation in counter-terrorism and counter-narcotics with Kabul via security agencies.’ Shoigu also proposed establishing a contact group between Afghanistan and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization to enhance cooperation with Kabul. Earlier, the special envoy of the Russian President to Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, announced that Russia had officially recognized the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. Previously, the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the Russian ambassador to Kabul, Dmitry Zhirnov, formally declared the recognition of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, stating: ‘Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi, Foreign Minister of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, received the Russian Federation ambassador to Afghanistan. The Russian ambassador officially informed the decision of his country’s government to recognize the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.’ Last April, the special representative of the Russian President to Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, met with the Afghan ministers of foreign affairs and interior, informing them of the upgrade of the Afghan mission in Moscow to ambassador level. Later, Kabulov stated in an interview with Sputnik that the arrival would conclude the issue of recognizing Afghan authorities.
