ON the face of it, a paradoxical relationship seems to be emerging from the recent engagement between Russia and Taliban controlled Afghanistan. On the one hand, like most of Afghanistan’s neighbors, Russia also has serious concerns about the presence of militant and terrorist organizations in Afghanistan and the help that they are receiving from the Taliban regime. But on the other hand, Russia has recently received Afghan Defense Minister Mullah Yaqub in Moscow, culminating in agreements for military and technical cooperation. The increased cooperation in defence and security raises a critical strategic question: why cooperate with a regime that presides over a country that has become a hub for terrorist outfits of various hues? Some of these deadly groups operating from Afghanistan include the TTP, IS-K, Al-Qaida, the Eastern Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM) and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU). According to the Russian Federation Security Service (FSB), terrorist organizations based in Afghanistan, such as IS-K, are recruiting from the Central Asian States as well as Russian migrant communities. These terrorist organizations have also developed financial channels across the Commonwealth of Independent States, thus posing a direct threat to Russia’s national security.

The Taliban’s record further amplifies these concerns. Estimates suggest that between 5000........

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