G20 to hold summit on Afghanistan crisis on September 28, Russian Deputy FM confirms

The Group of Twenty (G20) will, later this week, hold a summit to discuss the dire situation in Afghanistan. Speaking to media reporters, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin confirmed that the meeting was scheduled for September 28. However, he stopped short of revealing who will represent the country. "This is still in process; they should send an invitation," he noted.

The G20 is an international economic forum between 19 developed countries and the European Union (EU). This year Italy, under Prime Minister Mario Draghi, is chairing the forum. Notably, on September 22, the group held a ministerial-level meet to discuss ways to contribute to ongoing international efforts in Afghanistan. According to a release, the topics brought to the discussion table included security, human rights, re-establishment of peace amongst others. 

Russia slams US' hasty withdrawal

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, while speaking at a press conference in New York, slammed the United States for their hasty withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan. He said that the US and the UK had left the country without pondering over the aftermath of their action, resulting in the killing of over 200 Afghans in a bomb blast. Also, the top diplomat criticised the US troops for leaving a huge amount of military equipment in the already war-ravaged country. It is worth noting the Russian diplomat was speaking during a press conference hed ere his speech at the 76th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA).

The Fall of Kabul 

After the Taliban stormed into Kabul on 15 August, Afghanistan president Ashraf Ghani resigned and fled the country with his associates. Since then, several persons have lost their lives in the chaos at the Hamid Karzai International Airport with thousands of people desperately trying to flee the country. This includes the death of at least 169 Afghans, 11 US Marines, a US Navy sailor, and a US Army soldier in a suicide bombing at the Abbey Gate of the Kabul airport on 26 August. This led to US airstrikes on terrorists belonging to ISIS-K which claimed responsibility for this attack.

Image: AP