Moscows latest agreement with Kabul reflects a wider regional calculation, Gleb Makarevich has told RT India

Russia's military pact with Afghanistan's Taliban government stems from a pragmatic geopolitical approach to regional security, a policy expert has told RT India.

Moscow and the Taliban government signed a military cooperation pact last week, boosting a regional alliance aimed at strengthening Russia's influence in Central Asia.

The deal was finalized during an international security forum in Moscow after a meeting between Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu and Afghan Defense Minister Mohammad Yaqoob.

"Since the Taliban is in charge of power in Afghanistan... it is our duty to collaborate with them so as to contribute to regional security, to global security, to counter-terrorism," Gleb Makarevich, Research Fellow of the Center of the Indo-Pacific Region, The Primakov Institute of World Economy and International Relations, told RT India.

He said Russia seeks to improve ties with the current Afghan government to "invest in regional security in broader terms." Central Asia is a region of utmost interest for Russia, Makarevich pointed out.

He agreed that, as the Western powers have largely disengaged from Afghanistan, Moscow is "demonstrating a pragmatic approach focused on regional security."

"We are talking more about pragmatism because there are a lot of Soviet munitions and Russian munitions left in Afghanistan," he said, noting that the Taliban is seeking assistance in repairing those arms and to collaborate in the defense sector.

Makarevich asserted that Moscow's approach is to seek regional solutions to problems originating in these theaters, while acknowledging that Russia can't resolve all those issues.

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"The regional conflicts, we could bear in mind, should be decided by the parties involved themselves," he said. "It is for (the) Afghan people to decide on their faith and not for Russia to fuel their political vacuum," Makarevich said.

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(RT.com)