MOSCOW; The seventh meeting of the Moscow Format Consultations on Afghanistan was held in the Russian capital, bringing together special representatives and senior officials from Afghanistan, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. A delegation from Belarus attended as guests.
For the first time, an Afghan delegation led by Foreign Minister Amir Khan Mottaqi participated as an official member of the platform.
The participants reiterated their firm support for Afghanistan’s sovereignty, unity, and peaceful development, emphasizing the importance of integrating the country into regional economic and connectivity frameworks.
They stressed the need to enhance economic and trade cooperation, investment, and development projects involving Afghanistan to help the country achieve self-reliance and sustainable growth. Key areas identified included healthcare, poverty alleviation, agriculture, and disaster prevention.
The countries committed to continuing humanitarian support for the Afghan people and urged the international community to step up emergency aid without politicizing humanitarian assistance.
The statement emphasized the importance of counter-terrorism efforts, calling for closer bilateral and multilateral cooperation to ensure that Afghan soil is not used to threaten the security of its neighbors or the wider region. The participants underlined that terrorism remains a serious danger to Afghanistan and global security.
They also highlighted the significance of regional mechanisms in stabilizing Afghanistan and called on countries responsible for the current situation to fulfill their economic and development commitments to Afghanistan.
The joint statement firmly rejected any attempts to deploy foreign military infrastructure in Afghanistan or neighboring states, saying such moves would undermine regional peace and stability.
