The Russian Foreign Ministry announced its decision to host a conference for special envoys from the United States (US), China, and Pakistan to meet with representatives of the Afghan government and the Taliban to discuss the ongoing peace process in Afghanistan. This will be the first such meeting between the regional stakeholders, the Afghan government, and the Taliban since the intra-Afghanistan peace talks in Doha slowed down earlier this year.
Previously, Russia had hosted the Moscow format, which was set up to allow for the collaboration of regional stakeholders of the Afghan peace process. The 2018 meeting, which marked the second edition of these talks, represented the first time the Taliban had been invited to participate in an international forum.
While making the announcement, the Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson, Maria Zakharova said, “A regular meeting of the expanded “troika” is scheduled for March 18 in Moscow at the level of special representatives of Russia, China, the United States, and Pakistan, dedicated to the intra-Afghan settlement.” Meanwhile, to represent the Afghan government, invitations have been extended to President Ashraf Ghani and the chair of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation, Abdullah Abdullah. While the exact composition of the delegation that will participate from the government in Kabul is unclear, Zakharova said that the Afghan government had confirmed their participation. She added, “The meeting is expected to discuss ways to assist advancing the intra-Afghan talks in Doha, reduce the level of violence and to end the armed conflict in Afghanistan.”
The “expanded troika” is a grouping of countries that have had the most control over the peace process in Afghanistan and is comprised of the United States (US), China, Iran, Pakistan, and Russia. However, sources claim that Iran, who had apparently been invited to the March 18 discussions, has declined to participate, citing its ongoing tensions with the US.
Russia has been looking to expand this grouping to include other regional powers like India and some Central Asian countries, with the aim of enhancing the chances of the peace negotiations succeeding. However, India, which is a regional power in South Asia and a critical neighbour and ally of the Afghan government, has been excluded from this list. Responding to the several media reports on India’s exclusion from the meet, the Russian Embassy in New Delhi released a statement saying, “India plays a very important role in Afghanistan, and its eventual, deeper involvement in dedicated dialogue formats is natural.” It further said that India and Russia have always been “very close and forward-looking” on regional and international issues, including Afghanistan. Moreover, several diplomatic sources have reiterated that there was no intention to “keep India out” of this multilateral forum, adding that the March 18 meeting was set up under the “already established mechanism” of the troika. However, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs has refused to comment on these developments.
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken proposed holding a United Nations-led conference on the issue in a letter to President Ghani. Blinken suggests that this conference should involve the participation of the US, India, Russia, China, Pakistan, and Iran. In this regard, he called for a “unified approach” towards the peace process in Afghanistan. According to Russian officials, the March 18 “Troika Plus” meet will be “in addition to” the American proposal, and not “counter to” it.
India Excluded from Russian Meet on Afghan Peace Process
The Russian Foreign Ministry announced a scheduled meeting with China, Pakistan, the US, and the Taliban on March 18 to discuss the Afghan peace process, excluding India from the list.
March 11, 2021
The spokesperson of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova. SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS