MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin and European Council President Charles Michel on Wednesday expressed willingness for cooperation to stabilize the situation in Afghanistan and avoid the risk of terrorism, extremism and drug trafficking. They have discussed the evolving situation in Afghanistan and agreed to cooperate on regional stability, a Kremlin statement said. Putin and Michel also expressed readiness to prevent the spread of terrorism, extremism and drug crime, the statement added.

"Both sides stressed the importance of maintaining civil peace in the country and preventing violence, as well as establishing a real intra-Afghan dialogue to ensure the integrity of the Afghan state, taking into account the interests of all population groups," it read.

Putin also informed Michel about the steps being taken to fulfill the trilateral cease-fire agreement between Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia on the Nagorno-Karabakh issue, it said. Discussing the Ukrainian settlement, Putin and Michel agreed on the necessity of the Minsk agreement's implementation, the statement noted. In a separate statement, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Moscow is closely following the developments in Afghanistan and currently does not plan contacts with the interim government established by the Taliban.

It was on August 15 that the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan after taking the control of Kabul, forcing the president and other top officials to leave the country.

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