Skip to main content
Clear icon
63Āŗ

Russian embassy: Afghan leader fled with cars full of cash

1 / 2

Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

FILE - In this March 6, 2021 file photo, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, center, inspects an honor guard during the opening ceremony of the new legislative session of the Parliament, in Kabul, Afghanistan. Afghanistans embattled president left the country Sunday, Aug. 15, 2021, joining his fellow citizens and foreigners in a stampede fleeing the advancing Taliban and signaling the end of a 20-year Western experiment aimed at remaking Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)

MOSCOW ā€“ The Russian embassy in Kabul alleged Monday that Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has fled from Kabul with four cars and a helicopter full of cash, Russiaā€™s state news agency RIA Novosti reported.

The report quoted embassy spokesman Nikita Ishchenko as saying that ā€œthe collapse of the regime ... is most eloquently characterized by how Ghani escaped from Afghanistan: four cars were filled with money, they tried to shove another part of the money into a helicopter, but not everything fit. And some of the money was left lying on the tarmac.ā€

Recommended Videos



Asked by The Associated Press about how he knew the details of Ghani's departure, Ishchenko said ā€œwell, we are working here,ā€ without offering any more details. The AP couldnā€™t independently verify his claims.

Ghani left Kabul on Sunday as the Taliban swept into the Afghan capital. Media reports suggested that the president went to the neighboring Tajikistan or Uzbekistan, but there was no official confirmation of his whereabouts.

Kremlin envoy on Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov on Monday described Ghaniā€™s flight from Kabul as ā€œdisgraceful,ā€ adding that Ghani ā€œdeserves to be brought to justice and held accountable by the Afghan people.ā€

Russia's ambassador to Afghanistan Dmitry Zhirnov told the Ekho Moskvy radio station that, judging by the first 24 hours of the Taliban's control of the Afghan capital, ā€œright now the situation in Kabul is better than it was under Ashraf Ghani.ā€ ā€œUnder the terrorist Taliban it's better than under Ghani,ā€ Zhirnov said.

Moscow's criticism of Ghani, whose government had the support of Washington, comes at a time of heightened tensions between Russia and the United States.

Moscow fought a 10-year war in Afghanistan that ended with Soviet troopsā€™ withdrawal in 1989 and has made a diplomatic comeback as a mediator, reaching out to feuding Afghan factions as it has jockeyed with the U.S. for influence in the country.

It has hosted several rounds of talks on Afghanistan, most recently in March, that involved the Taliban ā€” even though Russia has labeled them a terrorist organization.


Loading...

Recommended Videos