On Tuesday, Moscow will begin hosting peace talks that have sparked controversy before they have even begun.

There is anger over the two-day “intra-Afghan dialogue”, both from the Taliban, who will be attending, and the marginalised administration of President Ashraf Ghani.

On Monday, representatives of the radical Islamic group founded on anti-Soviet resistance confirmed a delegation would travel to the land of their once-sworn enemy.

They will join several dozen prominent opposition figures, including former president Hamid Karzai and Hanif Atmar, who is running against Mr Ghani in this year’s presidential elections.

The snubbed Afghan government have reacted angrily to the prospect of talks, describing them as an attempt to “gain power”, and “not in the interests of Afghanistan”.

The Taliban, for their part, have long refused to engage with the Ghani government, calling it a “puppet” of the United States.

Officially, Russia claims the talks are being organised by an obscure group of Afghan refugees ... This seems unlikely.

The strains and controversies might explain why the Kremlin is distancing itself from an event that very clearly retains its fingerprints.

Officially, Russia claims the talks are being organised by an obscure group of Afghan refugees called the Moscow-based Council for the Afghan Community, and not under the auspices of the foreign ministry, or the Kremlin, or even an associated platform.

However, it would be difficult for an event of this type to go ahead without the organisational, visa and security support of the Russian authorities. Taliban representatives would find it hard to get past passport control given the fact their group remains on the list of terrorist organisations. This particular detail has been magnified to absurdity in the Russian media, which is still obliged to refer to the Taliban’s “banned” status when reporting about the invitation to Moscow.

The US-led Afghan conflict is now in its 18th year. For a long time, Russia was not keen to get involved. Few in Moscow relished the prospect of another drawn-out battle in the Afghan mountains, the memories of the Soviet Union’s disastrous campaign in the 1980s still fresh in the mind.

But in the conflict’s later stages, as the Taliban strengthened their position, and the US weakened theirs, Russia looked to regain a foothold, and cultivate a close relationship with the the Islamic radical group.

Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear Show all 16 1 /16 Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2001 Afghans at the Killi Faizo refugee camp desperately reach for bags of rice being handed out to the thousands who escaped the bombardment in southern Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom. (Chaman, Pakistan, December 4, 2001) Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2002 Mahbooba stands against a bullet-ridden wall, waiting to be seen at a medical clinic. The seven-year-old girl suffers from leishmaniasis, a parasitical infection. (Kabul, March 1, 2002) All photos Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2003 A mother and her two children look out from their cave dwelling. Many families who, fleeing the Taliban, took refuge inside caves adjacent to Bamiyan’s destroyed ancient Buddha statues now have nowhere else to live. (Bamiyan, November 19, 2003) Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2007 Students recite prayers in a makeshift outdoor classroom in the Wakhan Corridor, a mountainous region in northeastern Afghanistan that extends to China and separates Tajikistan from India and Pakistan. (Northeastern Afghanistan, September 2, 2007) Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2007 Bodybuilders in the 55-60 kg category square off during a regional bodybuilding competition. Many Afghan men, like others around the world, feel that a macho image of physical strength is important. (Kabul, August 6, 2007) Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2008 A woman in a white burqa enjoys an afternoon with her family feeding the white pigeons at the Blue Mosque. (Mazar-e-Sharif, March 8, 2008) Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2009 Addicts inject heroin while trying to keep warm inside the abandoned Russian Cultural Center, which the capital city’s addicts use as a common gathering point. Heroin is readily available, costing about one dollar a hit. (Kabul, February 9, 2009) Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2009 An elderly man holds his granddaughter in their tent at a refugee camp after they were forced to flee their village, which US and NATO forces had bombed because, they claimed, it was a Taliban hideout. (Surobi, Nangarhar Province, February 7, 2009) Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2009 Seven-year-old Attiullah, a patient at Mirwais Hospital, stands alongside an X ray showing the bullet that entered his back, nearly killing him. Attiullah was shot by US forces when he was caught in a crossfire as he was herding sheep. (Kandahar, October 13, 2009). Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2010 US Army Sargeant Jay Kenney (right), with Task Force Destiny, helps wounded Afghan National Army soldiers exit a Blackhawk helicopter after they have been rescued in an air mission. (Kandahar, December 12, 2010) Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2010 An Afghan National Army battalion marches back to barracks at the Kabul Military Training Center. (Kabul, October 4, 2010) Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2014 Eid Muhammad, seventy, lives in a house with a view overlooking the hills of Kabul. He and millions of other Afghans occupy land and housing without possessing formal deeds to them. (Kabul, November 21, 2014) Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2014 Razima holds her two-year-old son, Malik, while waiting for medical attention at the Boost Hospital emergency room. (Lashkar Gah, Helmand Province, June 23, 2014) Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2014 Young women cheer as they attend a rally for the Afghan presidential candidate Ashraf Ghani. (Kabul, April 1, 2014) Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2014 Burqa-clad women wait to vote after a polling station runs out of ballots. (Kabul, April 5, 2014) Paula Bronstein Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear 2015 Relatives, friends, and women’s rights activists grieve at the home of Farkhunda Malikzada, who was killed by a mob in the center of Kabul. Farkhunda was violently beaten and set on fire after a local cleric accused her of burning a Qur’an. (Kabul, March 22, 2015) Paula Bronstein

According to a number of reports, that relationship now has a military dimension.

In 2017, US secretary of state Rex Tillerson openly accused the Kremlin of arming the Taliban as it fought US troops. The following March, the claim was repeated by Gen John Nicholson, head of US forces in Afghanistan.

There has been no direct proof of arms transfers, but there is “probably” some truth to the rumour, says Artemy Kalinovsky, author of A Long Goodbye: The Soviet Withdrawal from Afghanistan, and senior lecturer at the University of Amsterdam.

“Nothing has been definitely documented, but Russia has made little secret of where it thinks its interests lie,” he told The Independent. “It sees the Taliban as part of a future government, and would want to show commitment, to gain goodwill.”

Moscow’s interests in the region are twofold, the expert says. On one hand, rivalry with the US is never far away – “any attempt that makes the US look weak makes Russia happy”.

But the major consideration is the “legitimate security concern” of stemming the threat from Islamic terrorism near Russia.

“The Taliban never really had ambitions beyond its borders,” he says. “Isis is another thing. It has ways to strike in Russia – through radicalisation and more. The Taliban has been fighting Isis, and Moscow believes there is plenty of room for further collaboration.”

In this, Russian and US priorities are more closely aligned than ever.

In talks last week in Doha, US and Taliban officials reportedly signed up to the outlines of a peace deal that would see US troops leave in exchange for a commitment not to host al-Qaeda again.

Many obstacles to a deal remain – not least the facilitation of direct negotiations between the Taliban and the government – but US chief negotiator Zalmay Khalilzad described “significant progress”.