Russia’s Supreme Court has withdrawn the Taliban’s status as a “terrorist organisation,” in a symbolic gesture aimed at improving relations with Afghanistan’s de facto leadership.
The Islamist group seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021, when American forces supporting the country’s internationally recognised government pulled out.
Moscow, which labelled the US exit a “failure,” has subsequently taken moves to normalize relations with Taliban leadership, viewing them as a viable economic partner and ally in the battle against terrorism.
Russia’s Prosecutor General asked the court to remove the group’s “terrorist” designation last month, following several trips to Russia by top Taliban officials.
A Taliban team attended Russia’s main business summit in Saint Petersburg in 2022 and 2024, and the group’s chief diplomat met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow in October.
The decision to suspend the label does not constitute formal acknowledgment of the Taliban authorities, who are seeking international legitimacy.
However, it helps Russian officials avoid humiliation when meeting representatives from the militant group at high-profile events.
Moscow’s attitude towards the Taliban has shifted drastically over the last two decades.
The group was formed in 1994 during the Afghan Civil War, largely by former Mujahideen fighters who battled the Soviet Union during the 1980s.
The Soviet-Afghan war, which left thousands of young Soviet men dead and wounded, resulted in a stinging defeat for Moscow that hastened the demise of the USSR.
Moscow put the Taliban on its terrorist blacklist in 2003 over its support for separatists in the North Caucasus.
But the Taliban’s return to power in 2021 has forced Russia and other countries in the region to change tack as they compete for influence.
Russia was the first country to establish a business representative office in Kabul following the Taliban takeover, and it has revealed plans to use Afghanistan as a transit hub for gas headed to Southeast Asia.
Both Russia and Taliban authorities have attempted to destroy Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K), an Islamist group guilty for fatal attacks in both Afghanistan and Russia, including a March 2024 attack on a Moscow music hall that killed 145 people.
Other countries have attempted to strengthen connections with the Taliban authority, but no state has yet moved to officially recognise them.
Last year, Kazakhstan announced that it had removed the Taliban from its list of “terrorist organisations.”
