Russian, Iranian presidents discuss situation in Afghanistan

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed recent developments in Afghanistan, where the Taliban have taken power, with his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raeisi over phone, the Kremlin said on Wednesday.

In their first conversation since Raeisi assumed the presidential office, the two presidents expressed readiness to contribute to the Afghan peace settlement.

Taliban overran the Afghan capital Kabul after the Western-backed government and resistance from its US- and NATO-trained forces collapsed.

While former President Ashraf Ghani fled the country and is now in the UAE; the group has declared the war in Afghanistan over, saying that efforts to form a government are underway.

While Moscow sees Taliban's willingness for an "inclusive" set up as encouraging, Tehran has welcomed the formation of a coordination council (comprising Afghan leaders) to oversee the political transition in Afghanistan.

Putin and Raeisi also discussed prospects of the revival of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal, as well as issues related to the next summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.