Taliban promised not to cross border, Shoigu said

MOSCOW, Aug 10. The leaders of the Taliban * promise not to cross the border and not to attack neighboring states, said Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. “His (Taliban *) leaders say that we (Taliban *) will not accept any destructive attempts to suppression of the border, by attacks on adjacent territories, «- he said at the youth forum» Territory of Meanings «. Taliban rejects US proposal for interim government in Afghanistan In Afghanistan, the confrontation between government forces and the Taliban * militants has continued for several years, which in recent months have seized significant territories in rural and border areas and launched attacks on major cities. The escalation is taking place against the backdrop of the withdrawal of American troops, which the Russian Foreign Ministry called recognition of the failure of Washington's mission in Afghanistan. On August 6, the Taliban said they had seized the city of Zaranj, the capital of Nimroz province in southwestern Afghanistan, and then occupied the administrative centers of seven more of Afghanistan's 34 provinces, including the city of Kunduz, 60 kilometers from the nearest border crossing to Tajikistan. According to a number of Western media outlets, the transfer of Kunduz to the control of the rebels could mean a turning point in the development of the situation in Afghanistan. At the same time, the official Kabul denied information about the loss of control over Kunduz. On August 10, militants reported that they had taken Puli-Khumri, the main city of Baghlan province, located on a strategically important road from Kabul to Mazar-i-Sharif, the largest city in the Afghan north. About a hundred kilometers south of Puli-Khumri is the Salang tunnel, built by Soviet specialists, which is located in the area of the pass of the same name in the Hindu Kush mountains. * A terrorist organization banned in Russia. Western mission in Afghanistan failed, Shoigu said