The Prosecutor General’s Office in Russia has requested that the Supreme Court temporarily lift the ban on the Taliban, as reported by Russian news outlets on Monday.
The Supreme Court will consider this request in a private session on April 17th. In 2003, Russia added the Taliban to its list of banned terrorist organizations, but has since been strengthening its ties with the Islamic group governing Afghanistan.
President Vladimir Putin acknowledged in July that the Taliban has become a crucial partner in the battle against terrorism. The Taliban administration has been fighting for years against the Islamic State of Khorasan (IS-K), a rival group which claimed responsibility for a March 2024 assault on a Moscow concert hall that left over 140 dead.
Russia has been improving its relationship with the Taliban since the US pullout from Afghanistan in 2021, with the two engaging in discussions at the Kremlin despite the ongoing ban. A recent Russian law allows for the suspension of terrorist group designations, setting the stage for the normalization of its relationship with the Taliban.
Even if the ban is lifted, this action would not equate to a formal recognition of the Taliban government by Russia. Internationally, no country currently recognizes the Taliban administration, which took control in August 2021 as the U.S. forces exited the country. The Taliban regime has implemented a strict interpretation of Islamic law that largely restricts women from public life.
Given the international community’s differing views on how to deal with the Taliban – which currently faces neither internal nor external opposition – countries across Central Asia, including Kazakhstan, have also started to enhance their ties with the group. Furthermore, there has been an uptick in interactions between the Taliban and the United States under former President Donald Trump, often in the context of prisoner swaps.
(Edited by Richard Connor)
Source: https://www.dw.com/en/russia-supreme-court-to-consider-suspending-ban-on-taliban/a-72099620?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf
