Chechnya and Tatarstan invited the Taliban to work in Russia

Several Russian regions have offered job opportunities to labor migrants from Afghanistan. This was stated by the acting Minister of Labor and Social Relations in the Taliban government, Abdul Umari, TASS reports citing the National Radio and Television of Afghanistan.

According to Umari, the issue of employing Afghan citizens in Russia was raised during a meeting with Russian Labor Minister Anton Kotyakov at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) and in negotiations with representatives from Dagestan. “Chechnya and Tatarstan, as well as other republics [within the Russian Federation], have offered us to implement opportunities for [the employment of migrants from] Afghanistan, especially in the agricultural sector,” Umari said.

At the same time, Viktor Vodolatsky, the first deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on CIS Affairs, Eurasian Integration, and Relations with Compatriots, believes that hiring migrants from Afghanistan should be postponed until amendments to the federal law are adopted. “I would advise our officials who make decisions about accepting Afghan labor migrants to first wait for changes in the federal law on the stay of foreign citizens in Russia. All the issues that concern Russians will be clearly formulated there,” Vodolatsky believes.

Earlier, the official representative of the Taliban government, Zabihullah Mujahid, stated that Kabul is focused on developing positive relations with Moscow. The Russian authorities are also inclined to cooperate with the Taliban. In particular, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that “it is necessary to build relations with the Taliban since they are the acting authority in Afghanistan.”

It should be noted that in a number of regions in Russia, the list of areas where labor migrants from non-EAEU countries are prohibited from working is being expanded, mainly concerning passenger and freight transportation, construction, trade, and so on. The UN Security Council included the “Taliban” in the list of terrorist organizations in 2003. At the same time, Russia also added the Taliban to a similar list.

In August 2021, the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan and have since been trying to gain recognition. In October of the same year, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Russia is considering the issue of removing the “Taliban” from the list of terrorist organizations, but this must first be done by the UN Security Council. At that time, the director of the second Asia department of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Zamir Kabulov, stated that recognition by the Russian authorities is “de facto already happening.” Representatives of the banned movement regularly visit Russia for both business and private visits.

Meanwhile, law enforcement agencies in Russia continue to hold citizens criminally liable for supporting the actions of the Taliban.