While many of the Western embassies evacuated Kabul, Russia and Turkey’s embassies are open for business, since they both have an interest in integrating Afghanistan into the great Central Asian economy and the Belt and Road Initiative.
While Russian Foreign Ministry’s Second Asian Department Zamir Kabulov told TASS on Aug. 15 that Russia “will wait and watch how the [Taliban] regime will behave,” before deciding on recognition. He also said that he hoped for the establishment of friendly relations between Moscow and Afghanistan’s new leadership: “This is not only a hope of mine. I am certain about this. We will be building relations with reliance on the material we have accumulated over the years,” Kabulov told TASS. “Our ambassador is in contact with representatives of the Taliban leadership. Tomorrow, as he told me just ten minutes ago, he will meet with the coordinator from the Taliban leadership for ensuring security, including our embassy,” Kabulov said.
Ambassador Zhirnov said on the Rossiya-1 TV, “We have taken a major package of measures to enhance our security, and at the moment there are no immediate threats to our staff or our facilities. We will keep working here calmly and as usual.” He also said Russia will do its utmost to help Russian citizens of Afghan descent to resettle in Russia.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoglu told a press conference that Turkey’s embassy is open for business and all consular operations are continuing. While some Turkish citizens are leaving Afghanistan, Çavuşoglu said there are Turkish citizens who wished to remain in the country.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan issued a statement saying, “We will make every effort for the stability of the region and Afghanistan.” Interestingly, Erdoğan said this during a ceremony on the occasion of the delivery of a corvette built by Turkey to the Pakistani security forces on Aug. 15 in Istanbul. Pakistani President Arif Alvi and other Pakistani officials attended the ceremony, too.
After the ceremony, Erdoğan and Alvi held a personal meeting at which they discussed bilateral relations, as well as Taliban’s overrunning most of Afghanistan. Erdogan said Turkey will be cooperating with Pakistan to assure stability in Afghanistan because “concerns over a new major refugee influx stemming from increasing instability in this region can only be prevented this way. As Turkey, we are also facing an Afghan refugee influx via Iran.”
