Consultations on Afghanistan may be held in Moscow later in October, says Russian diplomat

A meeting on Afghanistan in the so-called Moscow format that is involving Kabul, Moscow and a number of other regional capitals may be held before the end of the current month, Russia president’s special envoy for Afghanistan and director of the Russian foreign ministry’s second Asia department, Zamir Kabulov, said on Friday.

"Maybe," he said when asked by TASS news agency whether such a meeting could be organized in October as the media reported earlier citing their sources.

When asked to specify when exactly such talks would be held, the diplomat stressed, "There is understanding, we will announce it officially."

Consultation on Afghanistan in the Russian capital city were initially scheduled for September 4.

Invitations were sent to 12 countries, including the United States, which turned it down. Among those invited were the leaders of the Taliban (outlawed in Russia as terrorist organization) Doha-based political office.

On August 27, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had a telephone conversation with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.

The sides agreed to postpone the meeting because of the government reshuffles in Afghanistan and appoint a new date for the consultations in Moscow via diplomatic channels.

Later, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov said Russia hoped to organize this meeting before the yearend.