Don’t Need International Recognition, Says Taliban’s Interior Minister

Sopko stressed that SIGAR has uncovered “really horrific” information about problems with the United Nations’ operations in Afghanistan.

Sapko stressed that there are serious allegations of diversion and control by the Taliban about international aid in Afghanistan.

On Thursday, during a conference hosted by the Afghan Institute of Strategic Studies, the head of SIGAR emphasised that the international community is “repeating the mistakes of the past”.

The SIGAR chief said that the US Congress is in the process of passing a legislation that will prevent any aid from reaching the Taliban.

John Sopko said that the legislation is being passed in the US House of Representatives which will prevent any direct or indirect aid from reaching the Taliban. According to him, this legislation has almost passed in the US House of Representatives and is going to go to the Senate for approval. Sopko said that with the approval of the new legislation if the US aid to Afghanistan continues, it will not reach the Taliban.

The Taliban-controlled Central Bank of Afghanistan has continuously announced receiving tens of millions of dollars in cash shipments on a weekly basis since the past two years.

In the past, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has stressed that the cash aid transferred by the United Nations to Afghanistan is kept in the accounts of this organisation in a private bank and is used as humanitarian aid for millions of Afghans in need.

During the AISS conference, the SIGAR chief expressed concerns about the influence of the Taliban in the United Nations’ aid programmes and said that the United States provides most of the United Nations international aid in Afghanistan.

The SIGAR chief warned that "if the benefit of our aid goes to the Taliban", there will be serious consequences.

Sopko added that there is still interest in Washington for Afghanistan, but stressed that people in the US avoid talking about Afghanistan.

He asked the people of Afghanistan to convey the reality to them and they will convey these facts to the US Congress.

Mirziyoyev emphasised on strengthening cooperation between Central Asia and the Middle East in the fight against terrorism.

The GCC-Central Asia Summit was held on Wednesday, and attended by leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Qatar, UAE, and some other Arab leaders.

Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia hosted the first GCC-Central Asia summit.

Addressing the summit, Uzbek President asked for the cooperation of the participating countries in curbing extremism, radicalism, and drug trafficking.

Mirziyoyev expressed hope that the outcome of the Jeddah summit will lead to the expansion of relations between Central Asia and Arab countries in the Gulf.

He asked leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council and Central Asia to actively participate in the strategic project of building the trans-Afghan railway that could connect the countries of the Gulf to Central Asia.

On Tuesday, the representatives of the Taliban, Uzbekistan, and Pakistan signed a memorandum of understanding on the "Afghan Trans" railway.

Rahmon emphasised that the Taliban should grant the rights and freedom of all ethnic groups as well as women in Afghanistan.

The first meeting of the leaders of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and five Central Asian countries including Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan was held in Jeddah on Wednesday.

Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, hosted the GCC-Central Asia Summit.

During the summit, the president of Tajikistan emphasised that "Tajikistan has always been in favour of a peaceful solution in Afghanistan”.

Rahmon added that inclusive governance in Afghanistan will facilitate durable peace in Afghanistan.

The president of Tajikistan said that he supports all diplomatic efforts to form an inclusive government in Afghanistan.

He also asked Arab leaders and Central Asian countries to cooperate in fighting transnational crimes and drug trafficking in the region.

Reportedly, the Conservative chair of the defence select committee is facing a no confidence vote over the tweet storm.

“However well intentioned, reflections of my personal visit could have been better worded. I am sorry for my poor communication. I stand up, speak my mind, try to see the bigger picture and offer solutions, especially on the international stage, as our world turns a dangerous corner. I don't always get it right,” he tweeted.

Earlier, Ellwood had urged the UK to re-engage with the country and reopen its embassy. He had said security in Afghanistan had “vastly improved” since the Taliban returned to power, and suggested the West encourage the uptake of women’s rights “incrementally”.

He praised the appearance of solar panels in Afghanistan and noted that the country's opium trade had "all but disappeared".

The video posted by Ellwood, which even the Taliban welcomed, came as part of a visit to Afghanistan with the Halo Trust, a de-mining organisation.

However, with criticism pouring in from the UK Prime minister Rishi Sunak and even his colleagues on the defence committee and a number of Conservative MPs, Ellwood clarified that during his visit he also saw a very vulnerable economy that will soon collapse without international intervention and turn this country into a failed state, with terrorist camps no doubt returning and triggering mass migration.

“I also saw the increasing restrictions on women and girls. This suggests our current strategy; of shouting from afar, after abruptly abandoning the country in 2021, is not working. My simple call to action was to see our embassy re-open again and pursue a more direct strategy to help the 40 million people that we abandoned,” he stressed.

In the statement, he also wrote that the loss of his brother in a terrorist bombing in Bali, Indonesia, forced him to visit Afghanistan many times over the past decade and understand his country's efforts to combat terrorism.

However, over the past week, Islamabad has announced that Tahreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) enjoys sanctuary and freedom of movement in Afghanistan.

After Pakistan’s vocal criticisms of the Taliban, Durrani arrived in Kabul on Wednesday. His visit to Kabul comes a few days after the recent attacks by militants on Pakistani soldiers in Baluchistan province.

After the attack, the Pakistani army expressed its concern in two separate statements about the safe havens of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in Afghanistan and the participation of Afghan citizens in "terrorist" activities on Pakistani soil.

In a statement, the Pakistani army announced that it has "serious concerns" about the existence of safe havens and the freedom of action of the Pakistani Taliban in Afghanistan.

However, Abdul Qahar Balkhi, the Taliban’s foreign ministry spokesperson said on Twitter that Muttaqi conveyed to Pakistan's special representative for Afghanistan affairs that "Afghans will never harm anyone”.

During the meeting with Durrani, the Taliban’s foreign minister also discussed economic relations with Pakistan and expressed hope that the political and economic relations between the group and Pakistan will develop further. Muttaqi stressed that this requires “joint work”.

Muttaqi added that “a good opportunity has come up to strengthen the economy” under the Taliban rule.

The Taliban’s foreign ministry spokesperson said that in response to Muttaqi, Durrani expressed his country’s readiness to develop bilateral political and economic relations and stressed that Islamabad will pay serious attention to completing the construction of the Torkham-Jalalabad highway.