Taliban delegation visits Russia

By Dmitri Chircu

MOSCOW (AA) - A delegation from the Taliban has arrived in Russia, the country's Foreign Ministry announced Thursday.

The delegation met with President Vladimir Putin's Special Representative for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov, said the statement from the ministry.

"The Russian side spoke out in favour of launching substantive and constructive intra-Afghan talks as soon as possible so as to put an end to the bloody civil war and create an effective national government in Afghanistan," it said.

It added that the Taliban delegation supported Russia's initiatives towards reconciliation in Afghanistan.

*Writing by Busra Nur Bilgic Cakmak