The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) on Thursday objected to Moscow’s proposed talks on Afghanistan said that any talks for peace should be carried out under the leadership of the Afghan government and the people.

In a statement issued on Thursday, MoFAs said that although it appreciates the efforts by Russia for peace in Afghanistan, it stated that the Afghan government expects its regional and international partners to pave the way for intra-Afghan dialogue.

“Afghanistan will not attend a meeting where there is no commitment by the Taliban to enter direct talks with the government. The government would attend talks with Taliban at any location but that these would have to be direct talks,” MoFA’s statement read.

According to the statement, the Taliban has defied the goodwill gesture of the Afghan government for peace and stated that participation of the group at the Moscow talks would not hold any importance while it rejects regional and international principles for peace.

According to officials, the Kabul government has not received a formal invitation to attend the talks so far.

“Any regional consensus about Afghanistan needs to be structured in axis of the Afghan government. The peace process needs to be carried out under the leadership of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. We will not participate in the Moscow talks,” said MoFA deputy spokesman Sibghat Ahmadi.

However, a former Taliban political figure Sayed Akbar Agha said Taliban will attend the meeting and will start discussions on the prospects of peace in Afghanistan with countries in the region.

“Taliban has agreed on the Moscow talks and they will attend it. These talks are related to Asia. Foreign forces have come to Asian countries and there are concerns among these countries about it. All these countries want foreign forces to withdraw from Afghanistan,” he said.

There are reports that Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, head of Taliban’s political office, will lead the Taliban’s delegation in the talks.

But a perception exists that taking the Afghan peace talks to different venues in the west and east will complicate the reconciliation process in the country.

“Today the Taliban are ready to talk with the US and also they are ready to talk with Russia, but those who claim to be Afghans and want to bring peace in Afghanistan or talk about the peace process should talk to Afghans. However, they are not ready to talk with the legitimate government of Afghanistan,” former Afghan envoy to Syria Mohammadullah Haidari said.

Moscow prepares for the talks at a time after Alice Wells, the US’s Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs, met top Taliban officials in Doha.