KABUL. Oct 20 (Interfax) - Afghanistan does not pose any threat to any countries, including its closest neighbors, Abdul Salam Hanafi, deputy prime minister in the provisional government of the Taliban movement (designated as a terrorist organization and banned in Russia), said on Wednesday.
"The new Islamic government has been formed under the leadership of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan as a responsible government with regards to all countries of the world, the region, and especially our neighbors. We pledge that the security situation in Afghanistan is stable, and Afghanistan does not pose any threat either to the neighboring countries or more distant ones," Hanafi said at a Moscow-format meeting on Afghanistan on Wednesday.
The full text of Hanafi's address is available on the Twitter account of Zabihullah Mujahid, deputy information and culture minister of the Taliban government.
"The Afghans now have a responsible government committed to national interests and defending their country's political freedom. The current government also assures the international community that, as a responsible government, it is fully aware of all of its national and international obligations," Hanafi said.
"The people of Afghanistan do not wish to cause damage to any country or nation in the world," Hanafi said.
"We want our relations with the neighboring countries, the region, and the world to be based on the principle of national sovereignty and mutual respect," he said.
Hanafi also called on the United States to unfreeze the Central Bank of Afghanistan's reserves. "In essence, this is the Afghan people's wealth, and our suffering people should not pay for political disagreements," he said.
The Taliban leadership has tried to ensure the presence of all ethnic groups and walks of Afghan society in the new Islamic government, Hanafi said. "We should bear in mind that the recent events were revolutionary. But we assure our people that the process of reforming the country's political organization is continuing. It shouldn't be forgotten that the reforming of political systems takes a lot of time," he said.
Hanafi thanked Russia in general and its foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, in particular for the opportunity to share the Afghan government's and people's message with all countries involved in the Moscow format.