Taliban Claim Control of Some 90% of Afghanistan's Border Areas
12:51 GMT 22.07.2021 (Updated: 12:57 GMT 22.07.2021)
© AP Photo / Rahmat GulAn Afghan National Army soldier stands guard at a checkpoint near the Bagram base north of Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, April 8, 2020. An Afghan official said Wednesday that the country has released 100 Taliban prisoners from Bagram, claiming they are part of 5,000 detainees who are to be freed under a deal between insurgents and U.S. But the Taliban says they have yet to verify those released were on the list they had handed over to Washington during negotiations.
![An Afghan National Army soldier stands guard at a checkpoint near the Bagram base north of Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, April 8, 2020. An Afghan official said Wednesday that the country has released 100 Taliban prisoners from Bagram, claiming they are part of 5,000 detainees who are to be freed under a deal between insurgents and U.S. But the Taliban says they have yet to verify those released were on the list they had handed over to Washington during negotiations. An Afghan National Army soldier stands guard at a checkpoint near the Bagram base north of Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, April 8, 2020. An Afghan official said Wednesday that the country has released 100 Taliban prisoners from Bagram, claiming they are part of 5,000 detainees who are to be freed under a deal between insurgents and U.S. But the Taliban says they have yet to verify those released were on the list they had handed over to Washington during negotiations. - Sputnik International, 1920, 22.07.2021](https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/107925/62/1079256284_0:55:2903:1696_1920x0_80_0_0_f5bd26abd4bf1022a4156dbd4958d845.jpg)
© AP Photo / Rahmat Gul
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MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Taliban* controls approximately 90% of Afghanistan's border with neighbouring countries, Zabiullah Mujahid, the movement's spokesman, told Sputnik on Thursday.
"The borders of Afghanistan with Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Iran — about 90% of the borders are under our control … The border with Turkmenistan and the border with Iran are completely under our control. The borders of Pakistan (with the exception of a few small sections) are also under our control", Mujahid said.
The statement comes after Moscow noted earlier in the day that the hasty US withdrawal from Afghanistan had resulted in a major shift, with the Taliban taking almost complete control of the Tajik border.
© AFP 2023 / ASGHAR ACHAKZAIPeople wave a Taliban flag as they drive through the Pakistani border town of Chaman on July 14, 2021, after the Taliban claimed they had captured the Afghan side of the border crossing of Spin Boldak along the frontier with Pakistan
![People wave a Taliban flag as they drive through the Pakistani border town of Chaman on July 14, 2021, after the Taliban claimed they had captured the Afghan side of the border crossing of Spin Boldak along the frontier with Pakistan People wave a Taliban flag as they drive through the Pakistani border town of Chaman on July 14, 2021, after the Taliban claimed they had captured the Afghan side of the border crossing of Spin Boldak along the frontier with Pakistan - Sputnik International, 1920, 07.09.2021](https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e5/07/0e/1083384829_0:0:3073:2048_1920x0_80_0_0_be5a47da92d5f7cf670f28f20a00c4b4.jpg)
People wave a Taliban flag as they drive through the Pakistani border town of Chaman on July 14, 2021, after the Taliban claimed they had captured the Afghan side of the border crossing of Spin Boldak along the frontier with Pakistan
© AFP 2023 / ASGHAR ACHAKZAI
The war-torn nation has been witnessing major clashes between the Taliban movement and government forces in recent months. The militants gained momentum as American troops started pulling out on 1 May, in accordance with an agreement that the Taliban and the United States struck in Doha in February 2020.
According to the Taliban, its forces are now in control of nearly 85 percent of Afghanistan.
*Taliban, a terrorist group banned in Russia and other countries