Lavrov Says U.S. Kept Its Presence in Afghanistan Instead of Ending Terrorism
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said the United States continued its military presence in Afghanistan after the September 11, 2001 attacks instead of eliminating terrorism.
In an interview with the RBC television network in Moscow, Lavrov said Russia initially stood with the United States and supported its efforts to fight terrorism in Afghanistan. He added that Moscow was also ready at the time to cooperate in various areas.
According to him, Russian President Vladimir Putin was the first foreign leader to contact then-U.S. President George W. Bush on September 11, 2001, and express Russia’s solidarity and readiness to help.
Lavrov also said that a few days after the attacks, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution that formed the basis for the U.S. military operation in Afghanistan. He said the stated aim of the operation was to fight terrorism and help Afghanistan return to normal life.
The Russian foreign minister added that, under that resolution, an international coalition was formed and Russia was also ready to cooperate with it. However, he claimed that the U.S. presence in Afghanistan continued until the events leading to the withdrawal of American forces.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Lavrov said Russia, given its own experience of terrorist activity in the Caucasus, understood the threat of international terrorism better than many countries at the time.
The September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States paved the way for the start of military operations by the U.S. and its allies in Afghanistan, a presence that lasted for nearly two decades and ended in 2021.
