According to the RIA news agency, Russia’s embassy in Kabul announced on Monday that Afghan President Ashraf Ghani had escaped the country with four cars and a chopper full of cash, but had to leave some money behind because it wouldn’t fit all in.
Ghani, whose whereabouts are unknown, claimed to have departed Afghanistan on Sunday as the Taliban marched into Kabul almost unchallenged. He stated that he did not want any bloodshed.
Russia has stated that it will maintain a diplomatic presence in Kabul and hopes to build ties with the Taliban, while also stating that it is not in a hurry to recognise the Taliban as the country’s rulers and will closely monitor their actions.
“The way Ghani evacuated Afghanistan most eloquently characterises the collapse of the (outgoing) regime,” Nikita Ishchenko, a spokesman for the Russian embassy in Kabul, was reported as saying by RIA.
“They tried to cram another portion of the money into a helicopter, but not all of it fit. Some of the cash was also left on the tarmac “‘He said,’ he was quoted as saying.
The Russian embassy’s spokesman, Ischenko, verified his remarks to Reuters. He said he got his information from “witnesses.” Reuters was unable to independently verify the authenticity of his claim right away.
President Vladimir Putin’s special representative for Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, had stated that the amount of money the retreating government would leave behind was unknown.
“I hope the fledgling government does not take the entire state budget with it. If there’s anything left over, it’ll be the budget’s bedrock “According to Kabulov, who spoke to Moscow’s Ekho Moskvy radio programme.
