Afghan peace talks receive backing from UN, Russia votes against resolution

The United Nations General Assembly on Friday overwhelmingly voted in favour of a resolution commending the intra-Afghan talks between the Afghanistan government and the Taliban. According to the Associated Press, 130 countries voted in favour of the resolution, while China, Pakistan, and Belarus abstained from voting. What garnered everyone's attention was Russia voting 'no', which did not go down well Germany as the country had led the negotiations on the resolution. 

Read: Global Community Should Work To Remove Artificial Transit Barriers Of Afghanistan: India At UN

War of words between Russia, Germany

The resolution titled 'The Situation in Afghanistan' covers a wide range of issues, including the ongoing peace talks, terrorism, drug issues, regional cooperation, rule of law and democracy. German Ambassador Christoph Heusgen slammed Moscow for voting against the resolution saying it must have sent a wrong message to the Afghan people, who would be thinking Russia let them down at the world stage. 

Read: Civilian Casualties In US-led Air Strikes Reach Record High In Afghanistan: Report

Russia’s deputy UN ambassador, Anna Evstigneeva, hit back at Germany accusing the country of ignoring Russian concerns while negotiating the resolution. Evstigneeva called out Germany for being biased and unfairly favouring a group of countries during the negotiations. Nonetheless, Evstigneeva expressed her support for Afghanistan and said Russia will continue to stand with the country during the ongoing crucial period. 

Read: Afghanistan Government, Taliban Leaders Announce Breakthrough In Peace Negotiations

Heusgen, however, argued that 2020 has been the best year for Afghanistan in the last two decades, highlighting all the positive developments that have taken place starting from the peace deal between the US and the Taliban in February. 

This comes days after the Afghanistan High Council for National Reconciliation (HCNR) became operational. The Afghanistan High Council for National Reconciliation (HCNR), an inclusive and authoritative body on peace effort held its first Leadership Committee meeting on Saturday in Doha, Qatar.  

Read: US Special Envoy Meets Taliban Leaders To Discuss Peace Process, Prisoners' Release

(With inputs from AP)