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High-level American, Russian intelligence delegations visit India on the same day
September 8, 2021 by Joseph Fitsanakis 1 Comment

Nikolai Patrushev

" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://intelligencenews.files.wordpress.com/2021/09/first-post-v-1.jpg?w=203" data-large-file="https://intelligencenews.files.wordpress.com/2021/09/first-post-v-1.jpg?w=288" class="alignright size-full wp-image-20280" src="https://intelligencenews.files.wordpress.com/2021/09/first-post-v-1.jpg?w=630" alt="Nikolai Patrushev" style="-x-ignore: 1">HIGH LEVEL DELEGATIONS OF intelligence officials from the United States and Russia visited India on the same day this week, for talks with Indian officials about the situation in Afghanistan, according to news reports. This development highlights the frantic pace with which Moscow and Washington are maneuvering around the region, following the dramatic takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban last month.

India’s Ministry of External Affairs announced on Tuesday that General Nikolai Patrushev (pictured), Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, would be in Delhi “for high-level consultations on Afghanistan” between September 7 and 8. General Patrushev —Russia’s highest-ranking security official— is traveling to India at the invitation of his Indian counterpart, National Security Adviser Ajit K. Doval, according to the announcement. He was scheduled to meet with, aside from Doval, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishanka.

Late yesterday, however, the Chennai-based English-language newspaper The Hindu reported that “an American delegation of intelligence and security officials” had visited Delhi on Tuesday, and had “held consultations” with officials there. According to the newspaper, the American delegation was led by Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director William Burns, who is touring the region and is also expected to visit Islamabad in the coming days. The report also said that Burns spoke at length with Doval about “issues arising from the Afghanistan evacuation effort and Taliban government formation”.

It is worth noting that India’s Ministry of External Affairs and the embassy of the United States in Delhi declined to confirm or deny the news about the CIA director’s visit to the country.

► Author: Joseph Fitsanakis | Date: 08 September 2021 | Permalink


Russia denies rumors that its chief security official met with CIA director in India
September 9, 2021 by Joseph Fitsanakis Leave a comment

Russian embassy India

" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://intelligencenews.files.wordpress.com/2021/09/first-post-h-2.jpg?w=300" data-large-file="https://intelligencenews.files.wordpress.com/2021/09/first-post-h-2.jpg?w=629" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-20289" src="https://intelligencenews.files.wordpress.com/2021/09/first-post-h-2.jpg?w=630" alt="Russian embassy India" style="-x-ignore: 1">

A RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN has denied reports Moscow’s Security Council Secretary met secretly this week with the director of the United States Central Intelligence Agency in the India. The United States, however, has not commented on the reports.

As intelNews and others reported yesterday, General Nikolai Patrushev, Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, arrived in Delhi on September 7, “for high-level consultations on Afghanistan”, according India’s Ministry of External Affairs. General Patrushev, who is Russia’s highest-ranked security official, traveled to India at the invitation of his counterpart there, National Security Adviser Ajit K. Doval.

Interestingly, The Hindu, one of India’s two newspapers of record, reported on Tuesday that “an American delegation of intelligence and security officials” were visiting Delhi, and had already “held consultations” with officials. According to the newspaper, the American delegation was led by no other than CIA Director William Burns, who is said to be touring the region, and is also expected to visit Islamabad in the coming days.

Like General Patrushev, Burns met with National Security Adviser Doval about “issues arising from the Afghanistan evacuation effort and Taliban government formation”, said The Hindu. But unlike the Russian delegation’s visit, which was announced by the Indian government, the alleged American delegation’s visit remains speculative, and has not been officially confirmed by either Delhi or Washington.

It was not long before Indian media began to report that the American and Russian teams had met in secret, allegedly in order to discuss the situation in Afghanistan. On Wednesday, however, a spokesman for the Russian Security Council flatly refuted the rumors of a meeting between Burns and Patrushev. The Russian-government owned TASS news agency quoted Russian Security Council spokesman Yevgeny Anoshin as saying that “Patrushev did not plan to, and did not meet, with the CIA head in Delhi”.

The United States government has yet to comment on these reports.

► Author: Joseph Fitsanakis | Date: 09 September 2021 | Permalink
 
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apnews.com
FM says Taliban govt won't allow militant attacks on others
By KATHY GANNON
5-6 minutes
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The foreign minister in Afghanistan’s new Taliban-run Cabinet on Tuesday said the government remains committed to its promises not to allow militants to use its territory to attack others.

The first press conference by Amir Khan Muttaqi since the Taliban formed an interim government a week ago comes as governments around the world — and many Afghans at home — are searching for indications on how it will rule Afghanistan after sweeping out the U.S.-backed government and taking over Kabul a month ago.

The U.S. and its allies have pushed the Taliban not to repeat its harsh rule of the 1990s, when it monopolized power and imposed its harsh interpretation of Islamic law, including severe restrictions on women and minorities.

Mottaqi gave little sign whether the Taliban will bend to the international pressure. He would not give say how long the interim government would be in place or whether it would eventually be opened up to other factions, minorities or women.

He repeatedly insisted other countries must not interfere in Afghanistan’s internal issues, including in response to a question on whether elections would eventually be held.

Mottaqi, a longtime Taliban negotiator, did make the first confirmation by a member of the new government of its commitment to the Taliban deal last year with the United States that opened the way for the American withdrawal from Afghanistan. Under the deal, the Taliban promised to break ties with al-Qaida and other militant groups and ensure they don’t threaten other countries from its territory.

“We will not allow anyone or any groups to use our soil against any other countries,” he said.

During its rule in the 1990s, the Taliban sheltered al-Qaida and its chief Osama bin Laden. The group’s refusal to hand them over after the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks in the United States prompted the U.S. to launch its assault on Afghanistan, ousting the Taliban and leading to the ensuing 20-year war.

The Taliban, who swept into Kabul and toppled the U.S.-backed on Aug. 15, have come under heavy international criticism after they formed an interim government made up entirely of Taliban members, despite previous promises to be more inclusive. Afghans and governments around the world fear the Taliban will impose a rule similar to that when it last held power in the 1990s, enforcing its harsh interpretation of Islamic law.

When asked if the Taliban would include women or minorities in the government, Mottaqi said, “We will decide in time,” without making a commitment. He underscored that the government was interim and that when a permanent one is formed “we will take into account what the people want,” though he would not give a timetable for a permanent government.

“We are taking everything step by step. We have not said how long this cabinet will last,” he said.

Governments around the world have said recognition will not take place until a more inclusive government is put in place in Afghanistan. The United Nations now faces a dilemma as it prepares to begin the U.N. General Assembly. Several of the Taliban ministers, including Mottaqi and the prime minister, are on the U.N.’s so-called black list of international terrorists and terrorist financers.

Mottaqi urged the U.N. to move quickly to de-list the leaders, saying, “The list has no logic.” The Cabinet also includes Sirajuddin Haqqani, who is also on the U.N.’s black list as well as wanted by the FBI for questioning in connection with attacks in the Afghan capital during the last two decades.

When the Taliban last ruled, the U.N. refused to recognize their government and instead gave the U.N. seat to the previous, warlord-dominated government of President Burhanuddin Rabbani, who was killed by a suicide bomber in 2011.

This time around it is not clear whether the seat would be saved for President Ashraf Ghani, who fled the capital after the Taliban had reached the gates of Kabul. His departure shocked the political leadership in Kabul, including former President Hamid Karzai and Abdullah Abdullah, the government’s chief negotiator, who were still negotiating with the Taliban to form an interim government.

Mottaqi said the Taliban-led government seeks good relations with nations around the world but insisted they must not interfere in its affairs. He also called for international donors to send more aid, saying “Afghanistan is poor. It needs all the help” the world can give and promising it would be distributed without corruption. He urged international banking institutions to return to Afghanistan to continue their projects.

He also said that all of Afghanistan’s embassies operating abroad have been told to continue their operations. He promised Afghans would be allowed to leave the country and said it was the job of the Taliban government to provide passports to its citizens.
 
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