Abdul Manan Omari, the Taliban's Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, announced during his visit to St. Petersburg that the group is ready to discuss expanding security relations with Russia.
Omari stated that the Taliban is waiting for its name to be removed from Russia's list of terrorist organisations.
On Friday, he told Russia's TASS news agency that removing the group's name from Russia's blacklist of terrorist organisations would be a step forward.
Previously, the Russian Foreign Minister had announced that Moscow is considering removing the Taliban from this list. Russian President Vladimir Putin has also stated that establishing relations with the Taliban is necessary.
Omari, who traveled to Russia to attend the 27th St. Petersburg Economic Forum, told TASS news agency that relations with Moscow are based on mutual interests.
On the eve of the Contact Group meeting in Tehran, the Afghanistan National Movement for Peace and Justice wrote a letter stating that intra-Afghan negotiations should be the main focus of this meeting and the third Doha meeting.
This political movement emphasised that participants in the Tehran meeting should consider the opinions of all Afghan politicians.
The second meeting of the Contact Group within the Moscow Format, with representatives from Iran, Pakistan, China, and Russia, will be held in Tehran on Saturday.
The third Doha meeting, hosted by the United Nations with special representatives from various countries on Afghan affairs, is scheduled for June 30 and July 1.
On Friday, Jalil Shams, the head of this movement, referencing the Moscow Format meeting in Tehran and the third Doha meeting, wrote that increasing poverty, deprivation, human rights violations, the spread of extremism among young people, and the lack of necessary actions against foreign militant groups have exacerbated instability in Afghanistan and beyond.
Shams stated that participants in the Tehran and Doha meetings should align their diplomatic efforts with the United Nations Security Council resolution.
The United Nations Security Council had asked the Secretary-General to appoint a special representative for peace in Afghanistan.
Several former government officials, including Hanif Atmar, former Minister of Foreign Affairs; Masoom Stanekzai, former chief negotiator, and several other politicians, are members of the Afghanistan National Movement for Peace and Justice. This movement was established in 2022.
It stated that the Taliban must adhere to international commitments regarding peace, security, human rights, especially the rights of women, girls, and ethnic and religious minorities.
The movement emphasised that participants in these two meetings should consider the UN special coordinator for Afghanistan Feridun Sinirlioğlu's evaluation of intra-Afghan dialogues as a suitable path for ensuring peace and stability in Afghanistan.
The letter mentioned that the Doha meeting is currently the only international process concerning Afghanistan.
The head of the National Movement for Peace and Justice stressed that deviating from the UN Security Council resolution on Afghanistan would have negative and irreparable consequences.
The movement criticised the exclusion of Afghan politicians and civil society representatives from meetings related to Afghanistan, especially the Doha meeting and the Moscow Format.
According to this movement, excluding these groups from political processes will hinder achieving a final and desirable situation in Afghanistan.
This political movement suggested that for the participation of Afghan stakeholders in these meetings, separate sessions with both opposing sides should be held with an agenda, and the process should continue until the ground for intra-Afghan dialogues is prepared.
Habibullah Agha, the Taliban's Minister of Education, traveled to Russia on Saturday, to attend the Education Ministers' meeting in Kazan.
The Taliban's Ministry of Education stated that Habibullah Agha will speak at the meeting about the opportunities and challenges of education in Afghanistan.
According to the statement from the Taliban's Ministry of Education, he will also hold discussions with education ministers from several countries.
The Taliban's Minister of Education is traveling to Russia to discuss the state of education in Afghanistan even though the group has closed schools to girls above the sixth grade.
Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, the spokesperson for Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has said that regional consultations help ensure that Afghanistan does not become a hub for terrorist activities.
The meeting of the Regional Contact Group for Afghanistan will be held on Saturday with representatives from Iran, Pakistan, China, and Russia in Tehran.
At a press conference in Islamabad on Friday, Baloch said that the Contact Group meeting is an important step towards close cooperation among Afghanistan's neighbours to ensure peace, security, and stability in this country.
According to her, Asif Durrani, Pakistan's Special Representative for Afghanistan, will attend the Contact Group meeting in Tehran.
Rasoul Mousavi, General Director of the Iranian Foreign Ministry's West Asia Department, described the Contact Group meeting in Tehran as "a harbinger of peace, stability, and development for Afghanistan and the region through regional cooperation and convergence”.
Mohammad Jawad Mohseni, the head of Tamadon TV, has denied the Taliban Ministry of Justice's accusations that this private media outlet is affiliated with a political party and has usurped government land.
Mohseni stated that the land for Tamadon TV "was purchased from a private owner and is not government-owned”.
He also mentioned that Asif Mohseni, the former head of Harakat e Islami, resigned from the party before Tamadon TV was established in 2005.
Mohseni, the current head of Tamadon TV, is the grandson of Asif Mohseni, the founder of this private media outlet.
In a text published by Tamadon TV on X social media platform, Mohseni is quoted as saying, "The land for Tamadon TV was purchased from a private owner and has a legitimate and legal title deed, and it is not and has never been government property."
The text also requests the Taliban to appoint a committee to review their documents and evidence.
Previously, Barakatullah Rasouli, the spokesperson for the Taliban's Ministry of Justice had stated that "Tamadon TV, Khatam al-Nabieen madrassa, and Khatam al-Nabieen University belong to Harakat e Islami party."
This Taliban official had claimed that the buildings of all these institutions were constructed on usurped government lands.
However, Mohseni said that the Khatam al-Nabieen University building is rented and that the land for the Khatam al-Nabieen madrassa was legally acquired by Asif Mohseni during the previous government.
Previously, the Taliban had shut down two private TV channels, "Noor" and "Barya”.
Reports indicate that these two private media outlets were shut down due to their affiliations with the Jamiat-e Islami Party and the Hezb-e Islami Party of Afghanistan.
The Taliban Ministry of Justice has announced that political party activities are prohibited in Afghanistan.
The Afghanistan Journalists Centre described the Taliban's action to close Tamadon TV as an instance of suppressing media and freedom of expression in Afghanistan.
The Taliban’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Friday that Amir Khan Muttaqi, the group's Foreign Minister, met with Roza Otunbayeva, the UN Secretary-General's Special Representative, in Kabul.
The statement quoted Otunbayeva as saying, "Work is ongoing to prepare the agenda for the third Doha meeting."
The Taliban’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs' statement further quoted the UNAMA chief as stating, "Efforts will be made to prepare an agenda that is acceptable to all parties."
No details about the agenda of the third Doha meeting were provided in the statement.
Abdul Qahar Balkhi, the spokesperson for the Taliban’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, wrote in a statement shared on social media platform X on Saturday that Muttaqi discussed the details of the third Doha meeting and necessary coordination with the UN envoy.
The UNAMA chief expressed her desire to hear the Taliban's views on the final draft of the third Doha meeting's agenda. She added that after the agenda is finalised, the UN will send official invitations to all participants.
The statement also quoted Muttaqi as saying that it is important to prepare an agenda that is acceptable to all parties.
Muttaqi emphasised that the Taliban have shared their views on the third Doha meeting with all parties and will work closely with everyone on this matter.
