Russian Researcher Says Taliban Held Him On Espionage Charges

Mohammad Reza Bahrami, director-general for South Asia at Iran’s Foreign Ministry, posted a photo of the gathering on X and said all four countries had stressed the need to help Afghanistan overcome its current challenges.

Bahrami said that the important point for everyone was helping this country to overcome its existing challenges.

The meeting was attended by Bahrami, Russia’s special envoy Zamir Kabulov, Pakistan’s special envoy Mohammad Sadiq Khan and China’s special envoy Yue Xiaoyong.

Bahrami did not disclose further details but said the session was devoted exclusively to Afghan affairs and that each envoy shared their country’s perspective.

The four-way talks took place alongside the SCO’s two-day consultative meeting on Afghanistan, which opened Thursday in Dushanbe. Member states discussed Afghanistan’s current situation, its impact on the wider region and the need for greater coordination among SCO members in shaping policy towards the country.

SCO Secretary-General Nurlan Yermekbayev said ahead of the talks that engagement between member states and the Taliban administration on security issues would be on the agenda. He noted that Afghanistan continues to face social challenges, restrictions on women’s rights and ongoing terrorist threats, and said SCO members share a consensus on these problems.

Reza Bahrami, Iran’s assistant foreign minister and director-general for South Asia, said the meeting would emphasise the importance of greater convergence among SCO members in dealing with Afghanistan.

On the sidelines of the summit, Pakistan’s special envoy for Afghanistan, Mohammad Sadiq, met with his Tajik counterpart, Khisrav Sohibzoda, to discuss the growing threat of terrorism in the region. Sadiq said both sides underlined the need for a joint, coordinated strategy to counter extremist threats effectively.

In a message posted Monday on his party's official account, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader accused the country’s army chief of pursuing “short-sighted policies” and undermining his party’s peace efforts. His directive comes amid a surge in deadly attacks in Pakistan’s border regions.

Khan tasked Gandapur, one of the few PTI officials still in office, with leading the negotiations, a role traditionally held by Pakistan’s federal government. Many other PTI leaders have been arrested or removed from their posts.

Pakistani media described Khan’s order as a significant political and diplomatic shift. The former prime minister has long advocated dialogue with the Afghan Taliban and previously dismissed Pakistani military strikes on Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) bases across the border as “foolish.”

Khan said earlier that Pakistan launches operations against the TTP, and they escape into Afghanistan. He stressed that without the support of the Afghan Taliban, one cannot succeed in these operations.

Faiz Hameed, the former ISI chief, was the first senior Pakistani official to visit Kabul after the Taliban returned to power in 2021 during Khan’s premiership. His visit coincided with the announcement of the Taliban’s interim cabinet, leading to his being described as one of its architects.

Gandapur has repeatedly sought authority to negotiate directly with the Afghan Taliban, but federal officials have blocked the move, insisting talks must be handled by Islamabad. In March, Gandapur said the Afghan Taliban had agreed to security discussions and formed a committee, but the federal government withheld cooperation.

The provincial government has argued that dialogue with the Afghan Taliban is essential to counter terrorism in border areas. In April, Gandapur asked the federal government to grant him official responsibility for talks and said he would meet Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada if authorised.

He maintains that negotiations with the Afghan Taliban are the only viable path to peace in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The talks between Ismatulla Irgashev, Uzbekistan’s special envoy for Afghanistan, and Yue Xiaoyong, his Chinese counterpart, also covered upcoming high-level events related to Afghanistan, the ministry said in a statement.

It added that the meeting was held in a “constructive atmosphere,” and both sides agreed to strengthen dialogue between Tashkent and Beijing on Afghan affairs.

Neither China nor Uzbekistan has formally recognised the Taliban government, but both countries maintain extensive political and economic contacts with the group.

Uzbek Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov said in July that during a trip to Kabul he held the country’s “first political consultations” with Taliban leaders. He said Uzbekistan would continue supporting Afghanistan’s integration into regional and global processes aimed at ensuring peace, stability and development.

Mohammad Sadiq Khan, Pakistan’s special representative for Afghanistan, said in a post on X on Monday that he held a “comprehensive exchange of views” with his Turkish counterpart, Cihad Erginay. He added that the talks covered “ongoing developments in Afghanistan and their broader implications for stability, security and regional cooperation.”

Sadiq Khan did not provide further details, and the Turkish embassy has not commented on the meeting.

Pakistan has struggled over the past four years to prevent Pakistani militants from launching attacks from Afghan territory, a persistent issue that has strained relations between Islamabad and the Taliban.

Türkiye, meanwhile, is one of the few countries that has kept its embassy in Kabul open since the Taliban returned to power. Afghan embassies and consulates in Türkiye are also under Taliban control.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has previously criticised the Taliban’s policies restricting women and girls, though Ankara has generally adopted a cautious approach in its dealings with the group.