Analysis: For Russia, U.S. Afghan exit creates security threat on southern flank

FILE PHOTO: Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban's deputy leader and negotiator, and other delegation members attend the Afghan peace conference in Moscow, Russia March 18, 2021. Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The U.S. exit from Afghanistan is a headache for Moscow which fears spiralling fighting may push refugees into its Central Asian backyard, create a jihadist threat and even stir civil war in one ex-Soviet state, a former Russian diplomat and two analysts said.

U.S. forces vacated their main Bagram Air Base last week and most NATO forces have also pulled out. That has emboldened the Taliban, which has made territorial advances, raising fears about the Kabul government's grip on power and prompting over 1,000 Afghan security personnel to flee to Tajikistan.