Is Russian interference increasing in the region? Dr Moeed Pirzada invited former Ambassador Rustam Shah Mohmand to discuss the initiative for peace talk on Afghanistan by Russia. Amb Rustam said that Russia is trying to increase its dominance and influence in the region and particularly in Afghanistan. It is basically due to couple of reasons. Presence of ISIS in Afghanistan is threat for Russia as well as China, Pakistan and Iran. That is why Russia and Iran are also now supporting Taliban to fight against ISIS.
Russian initiative for Peace in Afghanistan started in December 2016, along with China and Pakistan. On 14 April Russia will host meet on Afghanistan. 12 countries including Russia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, Iran, India, 5 central Asian Nations and United States were invited for talks at Moscow, but US have not yet confirmed whether it will participate or not. This is first time when US will not be participating in the peace process. American presence in the region is also ambiguous yet. Are they in Afghanistan to curtail China or keeping an eye on Pakistan’s nuclear arsenals or something else?