Afghanistan wants to buy Russian wheat instead of flour

Afghanistan is discussing with Russia the possibility of importing certain food products amid the threat of disruptions in supplies from Iran caused by the armed conflict between Israel and Iran, one of Afghanistan’s main trading partners. This was announced by the Afghan Minister of Agriculture Ataullah Omari in an interview with Reuters.

According to him, “Afghanistan certainly strives for self-sufficiency in agricultural products. However, we still depend on some goods coming from Iran, and if there are problems there, it will definitely affect us.”

Against the background of improving relations between Russia and the Taliban government, an Afghan delegation last week visited Russia’s main economic forum in St. Petersburg and held meetings with representatives of the Russian agricultural ministry.

Russia, together with Kazakhstan, supplies Afghanistan with wheat and flour. Russia also exports sugar and vegetable oil to the country. However, Omari noted that Kabul is currently interested in purchasing wheat, not flour.

“We have asked Russia to send us wheat instead of flour. Imports of other goods from Russia are also progressing well,” he said.

In 2024, Afghanistan became the largest buyer of Russian flour. At the same time, in 2023, the country increased its own wheat production by 10% to 4.83 million tons. The country’s total annual need is about 6.8 million tons.

“For the last four years — after the Americans left — we have been striving to self-sufficient in basic products. Insufficient volumes, in particular wheat and flour, are supplied from Russia every year,” Omari added.

Tags: flour, Afghanistan, Russia, wheat