Shanghai Cooperation Organisation countries call for end to violence in Afghanistan

Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon and foreign ministers and officials of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) pose for a group photo during a meeting in Dushanbe, Tajikistan July 14, 2021. Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. MANDATORY CREDIT.

The foreign ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) on Wednesday called for an end to violence in Afghanistan against civilians and the authorities and urged the Afghan government to strengthen its position for the sake of stability.

Senior Afghan leaders are expected to meet the Taliban for talks in Doha this week.

In a statement, the SCO foreign ministers called for a purely peaceful settlement.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi attend a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Foreign Ministers in Dushanbe, Tajikistan July 14, 2021. Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. MANDATORY CREDIT.

(Reporting by Maxim Rodionov; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Andrew Osborn)

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrive for a meeting with Tajik President Emomali Rakhmon on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Foreign Ministers in Dushanbe, Tajikistan July 14, 2021. Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. MANDATORY CREDIT.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Foreign Ministers in Dushanbe, Tajikistan July 14, 2021. Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. MANDATORY CREDIT.

Foreign ministers and officials of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) pose for a group photo during a meeting in Dushanbe, Tajikistan July 14, 2021. Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. MANDATORY CREDIT.