Russia Reconsiders Taliban's Terrorist Designation Amid Diplomatic Shifts

The Russian parliament's lower house approved a bill to potentially remove the Taliban’s terrorist designation. Russia aims to engage the Taliban to stabilize Afghanistan, a move coinciding with Moscow's diplomatic resurgence. The bill needs further approvals to become law, with ongoing international division on Taliban dealings.

The lower house of the Russian parliament has given preliminary approval to a bill that could alter the Taliban's status as a terrorist group by suspending this designation temporarily through a court, pending further legislative and executive approvals.

Since being classified as a terrorist organization in 2003, any association with the Taliban is legally punishable in Russia, though numerous Taliban delegations have participated in Moscow-hosted forums. Russian officials justify these engagements as efforts to stabilize Afghanistan.

A decade-long Soviet-Afghan conflict that ended in 1989 saw Moscow retreat militarily but return diplomatically as a key regional power broker. The international community remains split on dealings with the Taliban, who have consolidated their rule over the last three years.

(With inputs from agencies.)