Russia has urged regional powers to fully integrate Afghanistan into political and economic frameworks, as the seventh round of the Moscow Format talks opened in Moscow on Tuesday with the Taliban attending as official participants for the first time.

India was represented at the meeting by its ambassador to Russia Vinay Kumar. The development comes ahead of Afghan Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi’s scheduled visit to India on October 9 and 10.

Addressing delegates from 10 regional countries, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that the long-term security and development of the region depended on Kabul’s inclusion in multilateral initiatives. “Ensuring the security and well-being of our region presupposes Kabul’s involvement in political processes, in multilateral associ

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