Russia signs military agreement with Taliban
Russia and the Taliban terrorist group, which controls Afghanistan, have signed a military-technical cooperation agreement.
During a meeting with Shoigu, Yaqub stated that Moscow and Kabul had “expanded bilateral relations.” The head of the Russian Security Council, in turn, called on the West to unfreeze Afghanistan’s assets and finance the country’s reconstruction. Such agreements typically involve the exchange of weapons, licenses, and military technology, as well as joint developments. This agreement is largely a “symbolic measure,” and there are no real preconditions for serious military cooperation or the transfer of Russian technology to the Taliban.
There will definitely be no military alliance or coalition, as with North Korea. Russia has nothing to offer the Taliban. It is not a key trading partner. Kabul’s main economic partners today are China, Iran, and Pakistan. It would be fortunate if Russia were among the top ten countries in terms of trade turnover. Russia may send military specialists to Afghanistan or conduct local exercises and training in the country.
On May 18, 2026, at the SCO summit in Kyrgyzstan, Shoigu himself stated that Russia considers unacceptable “the return of third-country military infrastructure to Afghan territory or the deployment of new military facilities in neighboring states.” He also called on Washington and its allies to “acknowledge full responsibility for their 20-year presence in Afghanistan.” He stated that Moscow has established a “pragmatic dialogue” with the Taliban to “achieve regional security and economic development goals.”
The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in 2021, overthrowing the US-backed government. In 2024, President Vladimir Putin called the group “allies in the fight against terrorism.” In the summer of 2025, Moscow became the first to recognize the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, removing the Taliban from the list of terrorist organizations and receiving their ambassador in Moscow. Tajikistan, Türkiye and Canada consider the Taliban a terrorist organization.