Despite ‘political differences’, Afghan Taliban seek global help – World

KARACHI: The Taliban government has appealed to the world to lift sanctions on Afghanistan, even as the Kabul government fails to address global concerns over the country’s dismal human rights and girls’ education situation.

In his opening speech at the Doha talks, Afghan Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, who leads the delegation to the Doha talks, said the process of easing financial and trade sanctions has been “slow,” posing numerous challenges for the Afghan government and the private sector.

According to Afghan media and news agencies, before the talks on Sunday, the delegation also met with representatives of the UN, Russia, Pakistan, India, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Uzbekistan.

“Afghans… have built a system to foster positive engagement with the world; but instead they faced sanctions and restrictions,” he said during his speech at the opening session of the two-day UN-led meeting in Qatar.

Zabihullah omits mention of girls’ education and rights issues; meets with envoys on the sidelines of the Doha talks

The discussion will focus on increasing international engagement in Afghanistan and a more coordinated response to the country’s economic problems, as well as counter-narcotics efforts.

In his remarks, Mujahid acknowledged that some countries “have issues” with steps taken by the Afghan Taliban government since coming to power in 2021, but added that such “political differences between countries are natural.”

“Political differences should not escalate to the point where powerful states use their position to impose security, political and economic pressure on our citizens that will significantly impact the life of our nation.”

Since coming to power, the Taliban government has imposed a strict interpretation of Islam under which women are subject to laws described by the United Nations as “gender apartheid.”

These actions were met with global condemnation, and the Kabul government has not been officially recognized by any other country.

The Taliban leader called the issues “differences of opinion,” adding that Kabul has “the will and commitment to positive interactions” and improving bilateral relations.

Meeting

The program for the first of two days of the meeting consisted mainly of opening remarks and short discussions aimed at preparing for today’s (Monday) talks on revitalizing the private sector in Afghanistan and the counter-narcotics strategy.

Ahead of the UN-led discussions, a government delegation met in Doha with special envoys from Russia, India, Saudi Arabia and Uzbekistan, Mujahid said on X, formerly Twitter.

To quote Mr. Mujahid, Tolo News it was reported that Saudi Arabia expressed its desire to reopen its embassy in Kabul as soon as possible.

The meeting will also be attended by UN officials and special representatives from more than 20 countries, including Pakistan and the United States.

Pakistan’s special representative in Afghanistan Asif Durrani met on Sunday with his US counterpart Tom West.

Tahir Khan also contributed to this report

Published in Dawn, July 1, 2024