Russia has signed a military cooperation agreement with the Taliban, further strengthening ties with Afghanistan’s ruling group and reinforcing its position as the only country to officially recognise the Taliban government.
The agreement was ratified during an international security forum in Moscow attended by senior Taliban leaders, including Defence Minister Mohammad Yaqoob, the son of Taliban founder Mullah Mohammad Omar.
While neither side disclosed details of the agreement, the move is likely to fuel speculation about whether the Taliban could eventually provide experienced fighters to support Russia’s war effort in Ukraine. The possibility has drawn attention because North Korea deployed thousands of troops to aid Moscow after signing a defence pact with Russia in 2024, although analysts say there is currently no evidence of a similar arrangement with the Taliban.
The development is particularly notable given that Taliban fighters, then part of the Afghan mujahideen, fought a decade-long insurgency against Soviet forces after the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979.
Speaking at the forum, Yaqoob described Russia as an important regional and global power and said bilateral relations between the two sides were expanding.
“Afghanistan and Russia have long and historical relations, in this direction we want to move further. We have expanded bilateral relations,” Mr Yaqoob said at the meeting.
Sergei Shoigu, a close aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin and former defence minister, used the meeting to criticise Western sanctions on Afghanistan and called for frozen Afghan assets to be released.
“We are convinced that Western countries should unfreeze blocked Afghan assets, fully recognise the full extent of responsibility for their 20-year presence in Afghanistan and take upon themselves the full burden of post-event recovery of the country,” Mr Shoigu said.
Russian officials also highlighted concerns about the presence of the Islamic State’s regional affiliate, ISIS-Khorasan, in Afghanistan and Central Asia. Moscow has repeatedly warned that the group poses a growing security threat.
The Taliban, however, dismissed those concerns. Spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid claimed ISIS had been “completely eliminated” in Afghanistan and insisted no terrorist groups were operating from Afghan territory.
“No country should have concerns about Afghanistan. No individual or group is allowed to carry out such activities. Isis has been completely eliminated in Afghanistan, and the Afghan security forces have fought against it,” Mr Mujahid said.
Analysts say the agreement is more likely to focus on security cooperation, equipment support and regional stability rather than troop deployments. They note that Afghanistan’s Taliban-led government is facing its own security challenges and lacks the resources to provide significant military assistance abroad.
