On Monday the Russian embassy in Kabul announced increased evacuation airplanes from Afghanistan, as Russian forces conducted military maneuvers near the Afghan border amid increased security threats in the region, Reuters reports.
It was unclear if the additional flights would resume after the Tuesday deadline agreed upon by United States President Joe Biden and the Taliban to pull American soldiers out who have overseen airport security since the Afghan government fell.
The Kabul-based Russian embassy stayed open when Western diplomats relocated to the airport after the Taliban took control over the Afghan capital on August 15.
Zamir Kabulov, Russian special envoy for Afghanistan, said on Monday that the embassy was seeking to build contacts with Afghanistan’s new Taliban regime.
Moscow was ready to assist in the reconstruction of Afghanistan’s economy, he added, asking Western countries not to freeze the Afghan government’s finances.
