Russia holds Central Asian military drills near Afghanistan border

The insurgents took advantage of the withdrawal of foreign troops to launch a series of attacks across the country.

In recent weeks, Afghan government troops and refugees have flooded into Tajikistan, fleeing Taliban attacks.

The Russian Defense Ministry said that the joint exercises will take place from August 5-10 at the Kharbmaidon training ground in Tajikistan near the Afghan border.

Alexander Lapin, commander of the Central Military District, said that the military would run exercises to defeat “illegal armed units encroaching on the territory of an allied country”.

The Russian Defense Ministry said soldiers from a Russian military base in Tajikistan and the Central Military District will take part in the matches.

The Taliban are believed to control about half of Afghanistan’s 400 districts, several border crossings, and have besieged a host of provincial capitals.

More than a dozen diplomatic missions in Afghanistan called Monday to demand an “urgent end” to the Taliban’s merciless military offensive, saying it contradicted claims they wanted a settlement negotiate to end the conflict.

Russia said USA failed its mission in Afghanistan, and blamed the withdrawal of foreign forces for the rapidly declining stability of the war-torn country.