Pakistan & UN Representatives Discuss International Recognition of Taliban

Shahabuddin Delawar, Minister of Mines and Petroleum of the Taliban, said that these six mines can lead Afghanistan towards a self-sustaining economy.

According to Delawar, these oil, gas and gold mines are located in Herat, Ghor, Kandahar, Logar, Jawzjan, and Samangan provinces, however, no extraction contract for these mining sites have been signed.

The Taliban’s minister added that companies from China, Qatar, UAE, Turkey, Iran and some European and American countries are ready to invest in these mines.

Delawar added that the Amu Darya oilfield contract has been signed with a Chinese company and there will be 540 million dollars investment on this major mining site in the next three years.

According to Delawar, currently 150 to 200 tonnes of oil is being extracted daily in the Qashgari oilfield, and the group expects that the daily extraction from this site will increase to 1000 tonnes per day.

He mentioned Afghanistan's lithium mines as the main wealth of Afghanistan and said that some Chinese companies have expressed willingness to invest in lithium mining sites of the country.

The Taliban’s Ministry of Mines and Petroleum has talked about the importance and development of Afghanistan’s mining sites to the country’s economy, while millions of Afghans seek refuge in other countries for security and lack of employment issues.

The Taliban officials have started appearing in a programme called "Government Accountability to the Nation" at the government media and information center since Sunday.

The "Government Accountability to the Nation" programme had started during the previous government of Afghanistan.

Earlier, the United Nations had reported that 94% of non-governmental organisations in Afghanistan had stopped their operations after the Taliban seized power in the country.

Taliban’s Ministry of Economy also claimed that currently 273 foreign non-governmental organisations and 2,121 domestic NGOs are registered with the ministry.

This ministry has also announced the dissolution of more than 216 non-governmental organisations.

Meanwhile on July 21, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in a report announced that the activities of nearly 94% of non-government organisations in Afghanistan have stopped or they continue activities with limited operations.

In a new UNDP report, it has also been stated that in the past year, it has helped more than ten million people in need in Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, Sayed Masoud, a former professor of economics at Kabul University, told Afghanistan International that limited operations of NGOs in Afghanistan will increase poverty across the country.

Referring to 97 percent of the poor people in Afghanistan, he said that the UN humanitarian aid to the needy people is actually a kind of "compensation for the lack of economic policy” of the Taliban.

He considered the suspension and reduction of these humanitarian aid organisations as the reason behind the increase in severe poverty.

Tashkent announced that the meeting was more focused on Uzbekistan's initiative to form an UN-led international negotiating group for Afghanistan.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan said that the senior coordinator of the United States Institute of Peace had appreciated Tashkent's efforts on issues related to Afghanistan.

The idea of forming an international group to negotiate with the Taliban under the auspices of the United Nations had been announced last year by the President of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

Mirziyoyev and Uzbek diplomats have followed up on the idea of the formation of this group in most regional and international forums on Afghanistan.

Earlier, the Uzbek president in a meeting with the President of the European Council said that Afghanistan should not become a source of threat to the region and the world. He suggested that an international group should be formed to negotiate with the Taliban.

Uzbekistan said that the representatives of various countries have welcomed this idea. However, so far, no more details have been provided about the progress of the formation of this group.

According to Maleki, after the warning of the President of Iran to the Taliban about the water rights issue from Helmand River, it had been expected that some action would be taken by Iran. He stressed that, however, there was no action taken against the group.

On Sunday, in an interview with Asr-e Iran media, the Iranian member of parliament emphasised that to pursue the Taliban over the water rights issue, the group’s embassy in Tehran should be closed.

The Islamic Republic of Iran handed over the Afghan embassy in Tehran to the Taliban in early 2023 and Taliban members have been appointed as the caretaker of the embassy in Tehran.

With the continued tension between the Islamic Republic and the Taliban over Iran's water rights from the Helmand River, this is not the first time that Iranian parliament members have proposed closing the Taliban embassy in Tehran.

Maliki said, "Taliban says there is no water, while according to the reports that are given to us, there is water in the Kajaki dam."

According to him, currently, the water rights issue is on the agenda of one of the committees of the Supreme National Security Council, so that the issue could be followed through non-diplomatic channels.

Maliki added that one of these ways could be to close the Taliban embassy in Tehran and reduce political, commercial, and economic relations through the Chabahar port of Iran.

In a statement, NRF added that Shias have held the Ashura ceremony without any restrictions over the past years.

On Sunday the front stressed on the "peaceful coexistence of followers of different sects and religions" in Afghanistan and said that the Muharram ceremony has always been organised with the "cooperation and sympathy of Sunnis".

Along with the NRF, other Sunni Afghan figures and political groups have also reacted to the Taliban’s restrictions imposed on Shia ceremonies in Afghanistan.

On Monday, Marshal Abdul Rashid Dostum also condemned these restrictions on his Twitter handle. He stressed that the Taliban are anti-Shia and stressed that the group is the enemy of a diverse Afghanistan.

According to Afghanistan International’s sources, the Taliban has prevented Shias from mourning the month of Muharram in public spaces across Afghanistan.