Russia urges key international players to coordinate efforts to resolve Afghan political crisis

"Russia urges key international players to coordinate their efforts to help find a way out of the current impasse and develop political solutions to ensure the interests of the Afghan people, establish true peace on Afghan soil and stability in the region," Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a press conference.

She suggested that intra-Afghan peace talks are unlikely to begin until the crisis of power in Kabul is resolved.

"The crisis emerged following the failure of last year’s presidential election in Afghanistan. Besides, the current Afghan authorities openly seek to hinder a prisoner exchange with the Taliban, which is a key condition for the launch of intra-Afghan dialogue," she said as quoted by TASS news agency.

She criticized the US for recognizing one of the candidates in the Afghan presidential election as the winner.

"The US played a part in the current aggravation of the political standoff in Kabul by de facto recognising one of the presidential election candidates as the winner," she said as quoted in Russia foreign ministry's Twitter account.

According to the diplomat, it ran counter to the agreements brokered by Russia, the US, China and Pakistan, which were aimed at boosting the creation of an inclusive government in Afghanistan.