Moscow Format talks on Afghanistan end without joint statement amid Kabul-Islamabad dispute

The eighth meeting of the Moscow Format consultations on Afghanistan ended on Monday without a joint statement after the Taliban and Pakistan failed to agree on wording related to terrorism, Russia’s special presidential envoy for Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, said.

Kabulov said Moscow regretted that participants could not reach agreement on the final document, attributing the disagreement to differences between the Kabul and Islamabad delegations. The Taliban objected to what they considered excessive references to Afghanistan in the context of terrorism — language that had appeared in the statement adopted after the seventh meeting.

The dispute comes amid escalating tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan, with both sides accusing each other of cross-border attacks. Pakistan’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Mohammad Sadiq, told the meeting that terrorism remained at the core of Afghanistan’s problems, while Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi said disputes with Pakistan should be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy.

Despite the failure to adopt a joint statement, Kabulov said the Moscow Format would continue as a mechanism for regional coordination on Afghanistan rather than for resolving bilateral disputes.

Opening the meeting, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow considers any NATO military infrastructure in Afghanistan and neighbouring countries “absolutely unacceptable”, according to Turkish outlet ANews.

The talks brought together representatives from Afghanistan, Russia, China, Pakistan, Iran, India and Central Asian states. Belarus and Egypt participated as invited guests.