How Times Change: Russia Signs Military Agreement With Taliban It Spent A Decade Fighting

Last Updated:May 28, 2026, 22:31 IST

Russia and Afghanistan sign a new military cooperation deal, deepening Kremlin ties with the Taliban and marking a historic shift in bilateral relations.

Russia and Afghanistan have signed a military cooperation agreement, highlighting the deepening ties between the Kremlin and the Taliban.

The announcement was made by Afghan Defense Minister Mohammad Yaqoub after a meeting with Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu at the International Security Forum in Moscow. Taliban minister said the agreement marked an expansion of the bilateral relations between the two countries.

“Interaction with Russia is important for us," he said. “Afghanistan and Russia have long-standing and historic relations, and we want to move forward in this direction."

In 1979, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan and then spend the next decade fighting a bloody war against mujahideen. However, after the US invasion of Afghanistan, Russia was accused of supplying arms to the Taliban.

Politico quoted Shoigu on Wednesday calling for Western countries to “unfreeze" sanctions on the Taliban and “fully acknowledge their full responsibility for their 20-year presence in Afghanistan."

This comes a year after Russia in April removed the Taliban from its list of banned terrorist groups, a designation that had been in place since 2003. Russia’s relationship with the Taliban has evolved dramatically over the past two decades.

On July 3, Moscow became the first and only to formally recognise the Taliban as the government of Afghanistan.

The step, which was announced following a meeting in Kabul between Russian Ambassador Dmitry Zhirnov and Afghanistan’s Acting Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi, has been labeled by Afghan officials as a “historic step" and the start of a new era in bilateral relations.

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