The Taliban has said that Russia and Ukraine should resolve its crisis through 'dialogue and peaceful means' in its first communication on the conflict.
It comes as Russia continue their full-scale invasion of Ukraine across multiple fronts, and having launched strikes in cities across the country.
An apartment building in the capital city of Kyiv was hit with a rocket in the early hours of Friday morning (25 February), injuring at least three people.
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President Zelenskyy confirmed that 137 of Ukraine's civil and army personnel have been killed in the first 24 hours of the invasion.
Now the Taliban has weighed in on the crisis, expressing 'concern' about the 'real possibility' of civilian causalities.
A statement was shared on Twitter on Friday (25 February) by the group’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman, Abdul Qahar Balkhi.
It asked Ukraine and Russia to safeguard “the lives of Afghan students and migrants in Ukraine.”
After the collapse of Afghanistan’s Western-backed government in August, the Ukrainian military evacuated nearly 100 Afghans to Kyiv, reports the New York Times.
The statement in full reads: "The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is closely monitoring the situation in Ukraine and expresses concern about real possibility of civilian casualties.
"The Islamic Emirate calls for restraint by both parties. All sides need to desist from taking positions that could intensify violence.
"The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, in line with its foreign policy of neutrality, calls on both sides of the conflict to resolve the crisis through dialogue and peaceful means.
"The Islamic Emirate also calls on parties to the conflict to pay attention to safeguarding the lives of Afghan students and migrants in Ukraine."
