With the security deteriorating and the four-way peace initiative finding momentum in Afghanistan, Russia’s role over the developments in the country has come under increased attentions. Russia is alarmed by the deterioration of security in Afghanistan and activities of militant groups there such as the Islamic State and Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. Moscow recently provided a package of 10,000 automatic rifles to Afghanistan to help the country’s security forces fight the insurgent groups. Russian officials have promised to expand security cooperation with Kabul and further boost the country’s assistance to the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF). Russia has also hinted interests in increasing investments in Afghanistan in areas of constructions, roads, dams and transportation and increasing exports to the country. During a visit of Afghanistan’s CEO Abdullah Abdullah this week, Russian officials promised to provide cheaper supply of electricity to Afghanistan. The heightened Russian efforts to expand economic and security relations with Afghanistan is suggesting that Moscow seeks to have a more active presence in the Post-NATO Afghanistan to help combat militant groups threatening Central Asia.
This is while Moscow has been at odds with the United States over many of the global conflicts and the rivalry has been steadily intensifying with the deteriorating situation in Syria. However, Russia and the United States have been cooperating over the conflict in Afghanistan all over since the fall of the Taliban in 2001. Since the fall of the Taliban, regime in 2001, the US has been spearheading the international alliance to fight the Al-Qaeda, Taliban and other militants in the country. Despite being often critique of the US approach in Afghanistan, Russia has been pleased with the US and its allies tackling the Taliban insurgency and currently suppressing jihadist groups such as the Islamic State and Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. When the US started to gradually disengage from the conflict in Afghanistan ahead of 2014, the unfinished task of the international coalition remained a concern for Russia. Due to this, Russia sought to play a more active role in the country and started boosting supports to the government of Afghanistan.
One of the key issues that shaped Russian approach in last over a decade to the conflict in Afghanistan was the presence of the United States in the country as the lead country in the fight against terrorism. Despite being happy with the US-led coalition tackling the insurgency and drugs in Afghanistan, Russia grew more pessimistic to the prolonged US presence and the unresolved conflict in its vicinity. As the crises swept Ukraine and Syria, two areas where the interests of Russia and the West, particularly the US, collided, the rifts between Washington and Moscow widened. This had impacts for the two country’s cooperation on Afghanistan too. A recent piece in New York Times said that Russia was “pulling back from cooperating with US on Afghanistan”. According to NY Times, Russian officials have been expressing exhaustions with the US policies in Afghanistan since the relations between the two world powers had further strained on conflicts in Syria and elsewhere.
Viewing the nature of cooperation between the US and Russia over war and peace issues in Afghanistan through the status of relations between Moscow and Washington is largely misleading. Russia and the US, as Russian Prime Minister put it, have slipped into another era of cold war, with the Syrian conflict dividing the world powers into two rival, if not hostile, blocks. However, the situation in Afghanistan is completely different and the two sides remain cognizant of the fact that Afghanistan requires cooperation from both sides. The opportunity in Afghanistan is that the country has not been serving as a ground for rivalries between Russia and the United States, rather both Moscow and Washington have been pleased with the presence of the another side. Russia has always been calling the Western alliance not to leave behind an unfinished task in Afghanistan which could later turn into a threat to Russia’s interests in the region. However, this has come true now, and the emergence of a new spectrum of militant groups is posing increased threats to Russian interests in Afghanistan and the Central Asia.
The recent deterioration of security in Afghanistan has alarmed both Russia and the US. With Washington pondering over the pace of withdrawal of its remaining forces, Russia is considering how best to help Afghanistan to tackle the growing insurgency and contain expansion of the militants’ offensives into the north. The recent provision of automatic rifles by Russia to the Afghan army was in line with Russia’s increased efforts to help the country contain fresh wave of violence expected to target the north and other parts of the country in the coming spring and summer seasons. Russia has moved to step up cooperation with the government of Afghanistan not only in areas of security and defense but also combating drug trafficking and improving Afghanistan’s economy. The country’s hints to increase economic cooperation with Afghanistan and increase investments in the country is also a major component of Russia’s new approach in post-NATO Afghanistan.
The new peace efforts of the Afghan government through seeking talks with the Taliban through the four-nation initiative – comprised of Afghanistan, Pakistan, US and China – has excluded Russia. Russia does not seem to be happy with its exclusion from the peace efforts in Afghanistan. Moscow has openly criticized US role in the peace efforts in Afghanistan, with an aide to Russian president Vladimir Putin and his envoy to Afghanistan saying “we’re already tired of joining anything Washington starts. The Kremlin has no desire to participate in what the Americans organize ‘on the fly’ just for their own pre-election interests and where they give us the role of extras on the set.” However, Moscow has backed the initiative by calling the Taliban to join the talks and insisting that the only option for the militants was to come to table of negotiations with the government of Afghanistan. This mixes and conflicted signals suggest growing anxieties in Moscow over the growing situation in Afghanistan and the many unsuccessful and unconcluded US war and peace efforts in the country.