UN: Al-Qaeda Still Connected to Taliban Despite Reduced Activity in Afghanistan
Alexander Zuev, Acting Head of the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Office, stated that despite a decrease in its activities, Al-Qaeda remains present in Afghanistan and continues to maintain complex relations with Taliban officials. He emphasized that currently, the ISIS-Khorasan branch and Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan are the most active terrorist groups in the country.
In an interview with the Russian news agency TASS, Zuev noted that Afghanistan has traditionally been a hub for multiple extremist groups for decades. This assessment comes as the Taliban administration consistently claims it does not allow Afghanistan’s territory to be used against other countries—claims that conflict with international reports.
Meanwhile, Sergey Lavrov, Russia’s Foreign Minister, identified ISIS-Khorasan as the greatest threat to Central Asia and warned that the group, with expansionist aims, intends to use Afghan soil as a base for establishing a caliphate. Speaking at a meeting on preventing arms supplies to terrorists in Central Asia, he underscored the transnational nature of these threats, a point also highlighted by Zuev.
Despite Moscow’s growing ties with the Taliban administration, Russian officials continue to express security concerns about the situation in Afghanistan. President Vladimir Putin previously stated that Moscow is not indifferent to the threats originating from Afghanistan.
At the same time, Asif Durrani, former Special Representative of Pakistan for Afghanistan, asserted that as long as Afghanistan’s territory is used against neighboring countries, the Taliban administration will not be recognized, and the process of normalization with the international community will face obstacles. He identified the presence of armed groups—including Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, ISIS-Khorasan, East Turkestan Islamic Movement, Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, and Baloch Liberation Army—as key factors sustaining Afghanistan’s international isolation.
