The top U.S. military officers from the United States and Russia held six hours of talks in Helsinki, Finland, on Wednesday, the first face-to-face meeting between them since 2019, as both nations adjust to the U.S. pullout and Taliban takeover in Afghanistan.
General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and General Valery Gerasimov, chief of the Russian General Staff, do not typically disclose the details of their discussions, and statements from both sides were minimal.
A U.S. military statement, which included details on the length of the meeting but not the agenda, said the talks were aimed at “risk reduction and operational de-confliction.”
Russia’s RIA news agency reported that the talks were aimed at discussions on risk mitigation.
The United States and Russia often have competing military interests around the world, including in countries such as Syria, where U.S. and Russian forces have operated in close proximity. How Washington and Moscow navigate next steps in Afghanistan remains to be seen.
The U.S. military is under pressure from Congress to shore up a counterterrorism strategy to address risks from Afghanistan following the U.S. withdrawal and Taliban takeover in August.
President Joe Biden’s administration has said it would rely on “over-the-horizon” operations that could strike groups such as al-Qaida or Islamic State in Afghanistan if they threaten the United States.
But, with no troops on the ground, the extent of Washington’s ability to detect and halt plots is unclear. After 20 years of war, U.S. military officials also have a dim view of the Taliban and note its ties to al-Qaida.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Moscow needs to work with the Taliban government and that world powers should consider unfreezing Afghanistan’s assets.