Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: Russia&rsquo;s Foreign Ministry has estimated that Afghanistan hosts between 20,000 and 23,000 fighters from various international terrorist groups, raising concerns over regional security, according to Afghan media.&nbsp;Ariana News, quoting Russia&#39;s foreign ministry, reported that over half of these fighters are foreign nationals. Among the larger groups, it cited around 3,000 Daesh fighters, 5,000-7,000 from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/un-warns-ttp-emerging-as-significant-regional-threat-from-afghan-soil" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)</a>, and 400 to 1,500 from al Qaeda. Smaller groups reportedly include the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM), Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU/Turkestan Islamic Party), and Jamaat Ansarullah.&nbsp;The assessment noted that Daesh remains hostile toward Afghan authorities but lacks the ability to seize territory, focusing instead on undermining public confidence.<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-1" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 897px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-1&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2025934201611252211&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2Fnew%2F&sessionId=0f788f5019564c51946ce9062ca401b85a0de722&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px"></iframe></div></div>However, Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesperson for the Taliban-led Interim Afghan government, rejected the report.&nbsp;Speaking to TOLO News, he claimed Afghanistan is under a unified authority, and no foreign terrorist groups operate freely within its borders.&nbsp;Mujahid dismissed Russia&rsquo;s report as politically motivated, drawing parallels with similar allegations made during the US occupation.&nbsp; &ldquo;Afghanistan is secure, and these reports do not reflect ground realities,&rdquo; he said, urging Russia to base its assessments on objective facts.

Afghanistan

Its foreign ministry says that over half of these fighters are foreign nationals. Among the larger groups, it cited around 3,000 Daesh fighters, 5,000 to 7,000 from Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and 400 to 1,500 from al Qaeda.

Russia estimates up to 23,000 terrorists present in Afghanistan 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan&rsquo;s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Mohammad Sadiq, on Tuesday met Russia&rsquo;s Ambassador to Pakistan, Albert P. Khorev, to discuss security threats posed by armed groups based in Afghanistan.&nbsp;In a post on X, Sadiq said the two sides reviewed matters of mutual interest, including regional security dynamics and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/afghan-clerics-forbid-use-of-soil-for-crossborder-terrorism" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">cross-border terrorism</a>. He noted that coordinated diplomatic efforts were also discussed to address shared security concerns stemming from militant activity in Afghanistan.<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-2" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 744px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-2&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2023654317803393210&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2Fnew%2F&sessionId=c4aff7d45fa999c492b8c3fc05352fa678a38b55&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px"></iframe></div></div>The meeting comes amid a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/un-warns-ttp-emerging-as-significant-regional-threat-from-afghan-soil" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">rise in terrorism in Pakistan</a>. Islamabad has repeatedly alleged that groups such as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) operate from Afghan territory &mdash; an allegation the Afghan Taliban authorities have denied.&nbsp;International organizations have similarly warned about the presence of various extremist and militant outfits in Afghanistan, cautioning that their activities could threaten regional stability.&nbsp;Earlier, the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) said numerous international militant groups remain active in Afghanistan, raising the risk of security challenges spreading to neighboring states, including Russia and Pakistan.

Pakistan’s Special Representative for Afghanistan Mohammad Sadiq meets Russian Ambassador Albert P. Khorev in Islamabad on Feb. 17, 2026, to discuss regional security, cross-border terrorism and threats from groups based in Afghanistan. (Photo: X/@Ambassa

Foreign Affairs

Pakistan’s Special Representative for Afghanistan says coordinated diplomatic efforts were also discussed to address shared security concerns stemming from militant activity in Afghanistan.

Pakistan, Russia discuss security threats from Afghanistan-based groups

GENEVA: Russian and Ukrainian negotiators will meet Tuesday in Geneva for fresh US-brokered talks seeking to end the four-year war, hours after both sides launched a fresh wave of long-range strikes. US President Donald Trump is seeking to position himself as peacemaker of the conflict unleashed when Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, but previous rounds of talks mediated by the White House have yielded no breakthroughs. Before the meetings began Ukraine accused Russia of undermining peace efforts by launching 29 missiles and 396 drones in attacks that authorities said killed one, wounded others and cut power to tens of thousands. &quot;The extent to which Russia disregards peace efforts: a massive missile and drone strike against Ukraine right before the next round of talks in Geneva,&quot; Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga wrote on social media. He repeated Ukraine&#39;s call for allies to exert greater pressure on Russia to negotiate in good faith by applying more sanctions on Moscow. The talks, which the Kremlin said will be held behind closed doors and with no media present, come after two earlier rounds held this year in Abu Dhabi. &quot;Ukraine better come to the table, fast,&quot; Trump told reporters ahead of the negotiations. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his team had already arrived in Geneva on Monday, while a source with the Russian delegation confirmed Tuesday that their team had touched down in the Swiss city in the early hours. Russia meanwhile claimed to have repelled more than 150 Ukrainian drones mainly over southern regions and Crimean peninsula, occupied by the Kremlin in 2014. Officials said an oil depot in southern Russia caught fire. &nbsp;Sticking points&nbsp; The war has spiralled into Europe&#39;s deadliest conflict since World War II, with hundreds of thousands killed, millions forced to flee their homes in Ukraine and much of the eastern and southern part of the country scarred by war. Russia occupies around one-fifth of Ukraine -- including the Crimean peninsula it seized in 2014 -- and areas that Moscow-backed separatists had taken prior to the 2022 invasion. It wants Ukrainian troops to withdraw from swathes of heavily fortified and strategic territory as part of any peace deal. Kyiv has rejected this deeply unpopular demand, which would be politically and militarily fraught, and has instead demanded robust security guarantees from the west before agreeing to any proposals with Russia. Russia&#39;s better-resourced army has been making steady gains across the sprawling front line in the eastern and southern Ukraine in recent months. But Ukrainian forces have recently made significant battlefield gains, recapturing 201 square kilometres (78 square miles) last week, according to an AFP analysis of data from the Institute for the Study of War. The counterattacks likely leveraged Russian forces&#39; lack of access to Starlink, which has disrupted communications, the ISW said. The territorial gain is concentrated mainly around 80 kilometres east of the city of Zaporizhzhia, a region that Moscow claims is part of Russia, and where its troops have made significant progress since last summer. The centrally located region hosts Europe&#39;s largest nuclear power plant, which Russia currently controls -- another sticking point in negotiations. For the talks in Geneva, the Kremlin has reinstated nationalist hawk and former culture minister Vladimir Medinsky as its lead negotiator. &quot;This time, we plan to discuss a broader set of issues, focusing on key ones related to the territories and other demands,&quot; a spokesperson for President Vladimir Putin told reporters, including AFP, explaining the personnel change. Kyiv&#39;s team will be led by national security chief Rustem Umerov, while the White House is expected to dispatch Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump&#39;s son-in-law Jared Kushner.

Europe

Negotiating teams from Russia and Ukraine are set to meet in Geneva, Switzerland, in an effort to bring an end to the four-year long war between their countries.

Moscow, Kyiv meet for US-brokered talks after fresh attacks

KYIV: Ukraine said on Tuesday that Russia was undermining peace efforts by launching dozens of missiles and hundreds of drones ahead of talks in Geneva aimed at ending Russia&#39;s four-year invasion. &quot;The extent to which Russia disregards peace efforts: a massive missile and drone strike against Ukraine right before the next round of talks in Geneva,&quot; Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga wrote on social media. The Ukrainian air force said Russia had launched 29 missiles and 396 drones in attacks that local officials said targeted critical infrastructure.

The Ukranian FM has lamented Russia's attack ahead of peace talks

Russia 'disregards peace efforts' with overnight attack before talks: Ukraine FM

Americas

Rubio, on a brief visit to Slovakia, said Navalny's death was "very serious" and the US decision not to join the report "doesn't mean we disagree with the outcome".

US 'not disputing' European report on Navalny poisoning: Rubio

MUNICH: EU top diplomat Kaja Kallas pushed back Sunday against &quot;bashing&quot; of Europe by the United States, saying Russia must be forced to make concessions in talks to end the war in Ukraine. &quot;Contrary to what some may say, woke, decadent&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/chinese-fm-wants-to-work-with-canadian-counterpart-to-eliminate-interference" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">Europe</a> is not facing civilizational erasure,&quot; Kallas said on the last day of the Munich Security Conference. <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/us-and-europe-belong-together-rubio" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">US Secretary of State Marco Rubio</a>&nbsp;on Saturday reassured allies by saying Washington and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/european-debate-over-nuclear-weapons-gains-pace-at-munich-security-conference" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">Europe</a> &quot;belong together&quot; -- but insisted the continent must defend against mass migration to protect its &quot;civilization&quot;. &quot;The message that we heard is that America and Europe are intertwined, have been in the past and will be in the future. I think this is important,&quot; Kallas said. &quot;It is also clear that we don&#39;t see eye to eye in all the issues, and this will remain the case,&quot; she said. The gathering in Munich has seen European officials insist that the continent must take the lead in its defense in the face of an aggressive Russia and doubts about the reliability of the United States, as President Donald Trump upends ties. &lsquo;Need to reclaim European agency&rsquo;&quot;There is an urgent need to reclaim European agency,&quot; Kallas said. She said European defense &quot;starts in Ukraine&quot; and depends on how Russia&#39;s war ends as the United States pushes efforts to stop the fighting. &quot;Let&#39;s be clear-eyed about Russia. Russia is no superpower,&quot; Kallas said, insisting the country was &quot;broken.&quot; &quot;The greatest threat Russia presents right now is that it gains more at the negotiation table than it has achieved on the battlefield.&quot; Size of Russia&rsquo;s military&nbsp;The EU top diplomat called for the size of Russia&#39;s military to be capped, said Moscow must pay for damages caused, and be held accountable for war crimes. France&#39;s Europe minister, Benjamin Haddad, backed calls for Europe to pay less attention to what the US says and to focus on bolstering its own capabilities. &quot;I think the worst lesson we could draw from this weekend is to say, well, I can cling to some love words that I heard in part of his speech and push the snooze button,&quot; Haddad said of Rubio&#39;s address. &quot;Focus on what we can control, focus on our rearmament, on the support for Ukraine and the threat that Russia poses to all of our democracies.&quot;

‘Contrary to what some may say, woke, decadent Europe is not facing civilizational erasure,’ says Kaja Kallas on the last day of the Munich Security Conference.

EU top diplomat rejects Europe 'bashing' by US

GENEVA: A senior US official on Friday criticised the <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/trump-urges-new-nuclear-treaty-after-russia-agreement-ends" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">last nuclear treaty </a>between Russia and the United States for <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/last-usrussia-nuclear-treaty-ends-in-grave-moment-for-world" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">failing to include Beijing</a>, speaking at the United Nations a day after the New START deal expired.&nbsp;&quot;In a nutshell, New START was flawed,&quot; said Thomas G. DiNanno, US Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, pointing out that it had not covered all nuclear weapons, &quot;and it didn&#39;t include China&quot;.&nbsp;Speaking to reporters in Geneva before addressing the Conference on Disarmament, he said US President Donald Trump &quot;has been pretty clear that he wants a better agreement&quot;, and &quot;clarified again last night that he wants a new treaty&quot;.&nbsp;&quot;He&#39;s been crystal clear. He&#39;s been consistent on it too, since his first administration,&quot; DiNanno said.&nbsp;&quot;So we&#39;ll see how it plays out.&quot;&nbsp;Asked if China had agreed to anything, DiNanno said: &quot;We&#39;re always willing to talk to them.&quot;&nbsp;China said on Thursday it would not join nuclear talks &quot;at this stage&quot; after the treaty&#39;s expiry that day triggered fears of a new global arms race.&nbsp;Campaigners have warned that the expiry, which ended decades of restrictions on how many warheads Russia and the United States deploy, could encourage China to expand its own arsenal.&nbsp;The New START treaty ended at the turn of the calendar on February 5, after Trump did not follow up on Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin&#39;s proposal to extend warhead limits in the agreement for one year.&nbsp;Russia and the United States together control more than 80 percent of the world&#39;s nuclear warheads, but arms agreements have been withering away.&nbsp;New START, first signed in 2010, limited each side&#39;s nuclear arsenal to 1,550 deployed strategic warheads -- a reduction of nearly 30 percent from the previous limit set in 2002.&nbsp;It also allowed each side to conduct on-site inspections of the other&#39;s nuclear arsenal, although these were suspended during the Covid-19 pandemic and have not resumed since.&nbsp;The Conference on Disarmament negotiating forum, which is comprised of 65 member states and meets in Geneva.

China

A senior US official says the expired New START nuclear treaty is flawed for excluding China, as Washington pushes for a new deal and Beijing refuses talks, raising fears of a renewed global arms race.

New START nuclear treaty 'was flawed': senior US official

MOSCOW: The Kremlin said Tuesday it had not received any indication from India that it would stop buying Russian oil following the announcement of a trade deal with US President Donald Trump.&nbsp;Trump said he had struck a deal to reduce tariffs on India and that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised to stop buying Russian oil over the war in Ukraine.&nbsp;India&#39;s purchases of Russian oil -- discounted due to Western sanctions complicating logistics and cutting off markets -- have surged since Russia launched its full-scale military offensive on Ukraine in February 2022.&nbsp;Ukraine and its Western allies have been seeking to cut off the billions of dollars in revenue, a vital source of income for Russia&#39;s stretched economy and its military.&nbsp;&quot;So far, we haven&#39;t heard any statements from New Delhi on this matter,&quot; Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, including AFP.&nbsp;Trump said he was cutting levies on Indian goods to 18 percent. He had previously imposed 25 percent &quot;reciprocal&quot; tariffs on many products, plus an additional 25 percent for New Delhi&#39;s purchases of Moscow&#39;s oil.&nbsp;While Modi thanked Trump for the &quot;wonderful&quot; phone call and the easing of tariffs, he made no reference to Trump&#39;s assertion about halting oil purchases.&nbsp;In 2024, Russia supplied nearly 36 percent of India&#39;s total crude imports, around 1.8 million barrels of discounted oil per day.&nbsp;But after Trump hit New Delhi with tariffs, India&#39;s monthly oil imports from Russia plunged by 38 percent, local media reported, citing India&#39;s Ministry of Commerce and Industry&#39;s data.&nbsp;Russian President Vladimir Putin promised &quot;uninterrupted shipments&quot; of oil during a visit to New Delhi in late 2025.&nbsp;Bilateral trade between the two sides reached $68.7 billion in 2024-25 -- almost six times higher than the pre-pandemic levels -- dominated by Moscow&#39;s energy sales, with Indian exports to Russia accounting for under $5 billion.

This combination of pictures created on February 02, 2026 shows, L/R, US President Donald Trump in Palm Beach, Florida, February 1, 2026 and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on January 29, 2026. (AFP/File)

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov says the country has not heard any statements from New Delhi on this matter.

Russia says India has not said it will halt oil purchases

MOSCOW: The Kremlin on Monday said the US-brokered trilateral talks in the UAE between Russian and Ukrainian negotiators had been held in a &quot;constructive spirit&quot; but that there was still &quot;significant work ahead&quot;. &quot;It would be a mistake to expect any significant results from the initial contacts... But the very fact that these contacts have begun in a constructive spirit can be viewed positively. However, there is significant work ahead,&quot; Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists. The<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/us-ukrainian-and-russian-officials-to-meet-in-uae-kremlin" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer"> two-day meeting</a> in Abu Dhabi on Friday and Saturday was the first time negotiators from Moscow and Kyiv have faced each other to talk about a plan being pushed by US President Donald Trump to end the nearly four-year war. The trilateral talks in the UAE will resume on February 1, according to a US official. &quot;I wouldn&#39;t say there was any friendliness there, it&#39;s hardly possible at this stage,&quot; Peskov said on Monday. &quot;But if you&#39;re trying to achieve something through negotiations, you need to speak constructively.&quot; Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier that during the Abu Dhabi meeting, &quot;a lot was discussed, and it is important that the conversations were constructive&quot;. On the eve of day two, Russian drones and missiles cut off millions from electricity in sub-zero temperatures, prompting Kyiv to accuse Moscow of undermining the negotiations. Kyiv said on Monday that Russia launched 138 drones at Ukraine&#39;s territory overnight, with hits &quot;recorded at 11 locations&quot; according to its air force.

This handout photograph taken and released by the UAE Presidential Court on January 23, 2026 shows UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan (C) speaking with the heads of delegations participating in the UAE-hosted trilateral talks between the US,

Middle East

Asia

Russia said US-brokered talks with Ukraine in the UAE yielded no breakthroughs, with more work ahead, as both sides confirmed discussions would resume Feb 1 amid continued drone and missile attacks overnight.

Russia says Ukraine talks in UAE held in 'constructive spirit'

ISLAMABAD: Iran has said it seeks neither escalation nor confrontation but warned that any act of aggression against it would be met with a decisive and lawful response under the UN Charter. Speaking at a UN Security Council meeting, Iran&rsquo;s Deputy Permanent Representative Ambassador Gholamhossein Darzi said any threat or use of force against Iran, under any pretext including claims of protecting protesters or supporting the Iranian people, would constitute a grave violation of international law and the UN Charter. He said such actions would breach Article 2(4) of the Charter, which prohibits the threat or use of force, as well as Article 2(7) on non-intervention in internal affairs. Darzi said there was a clear legal, moral and political responsibility to reject and condemn such unlawful actions. &ldquo;The credibility of the United Nations and the survival of the Charter itself now depend on whether these fundamental prohibitions are upheld or eroded,&rdquo; he said. Darzi stressed that while Iran does not seek escalation, any <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/signals-point-to-imminent-us-strikes-on-iran-report" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">direct or indirect aggression</a> would draw a proportionate and lawful response under Article 51 of the Charter, adding that responsibility for the consequences would lie with those who initiate such acts. He accused the United States of using the meeting to conceal its alleged role in <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/iranian-ambassador-says-recent-unrest-was-foreignbacked-terrorism-not-protest" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">fueling unrest in Iran</a> and laying the groundwork for political destabilization and possible&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/trump-keeps-iran-air-strikes-on-table-white-house-says" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">military intervention</a> under what he described as a humanitarian narrative. He also objected to the participation of civil society briefers, saying they represented the political agendas of the United States and Israel. &lsquo;US stands with brave people of Iran&rsquo;Ambassador Mike Waltz of the United States thanked today&rsquo;s briefers for their courage &ndash; &quot;both of whom have personally targeted for assassination both of whom have been tortured &ldquo;at the hands of this brutal regime&rdquo;. &ldquo;The level of violence, this level of repression that the Iranian regime has unleashed against its own citizens and its own people has repercussions for international peace and security,&rdquo; he said. The people of Iran are demanding their freedom like never before in the Islamic Republic&rsquo;s brutal history, he said. &ldquo;President Donald J. Trump and the United States of America stands by the brave people of Iran,&rdquo; he affirmed. &nbsp;&ldquo;Regardless of its excuses, the regime is solely responsible for the economic misery of the Iranian people&rdquo; and &ldquo;will be held accountable&rdquo;. &lsquo;US fueling hysteria around Iran&rsquo;Russia criticized the US approach, with Ambassador Vassily A. Nebenzia accusing Washington of escalating tensions and fueling what he called hysteria around Iran. He said the Security Council meeting, requested by the United States, was an attempt to justify interference in the internal affairs of a sovereign state. Nebenzia warned that the US was threatening strikes aimed at overthrowing an undesirable regime, rather than addressing the issue through the Council&rsquo;s mandate to maintain international peace and security. &lsquo;Force can never solve problems&rsquo;China also voiced strong opposition to any <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/turkey-calls-for-dialogue-to-resolve-iran-unrest-foreign-minister" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">use of force</a>. Ambassador Sun Lei said the United States had openly issued threats against Iran, stressing that sovereign equality and non-interference are the most fundamental norms of international relations. He said the use of force could never solve problems and warned that military adventurism would push the region towards an abyss, adding that no action in defiance of international law could be tolerated.

Iran’s Deputy Permanent Representative Ambassador Gholamhossein Darzi speaks at the United Nations Security Council meeting on January 15, 2026

US accuses Tehran of violent repression with repercussions for international peace and security; Russia says Washington fueling hysteria around Iran to justify interference; China warns military adventurism would push the region towards instability.

Articles tagged with "Russia"