Pakistan & UN Representatives Discuss International Recognition of Taliban

Asif Durrani, Pakistan's special representative for Afghanistan, met with Feridun Sinirlioğlu, the UN Special Coordinator for Afghanistan, on Monday and discussed issues related to the recognition of the Taliban.

According to Durrani, the two also discussed the rights of Afghan women and the presence of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in Afghanistan.

The senior Pakistani official did not provide further details about the discussion regarding the recognition of the Taliban. Earlier, the United Nations had said that only the member states of the United Nations would decide whether to recognise the Taliban government or not.

Earlier, the Taliban had also announced that the United Nations will invite the representative of the group to participate in the next UN conference on Afghanistan at the end of 2023.

Durrani and Sinirlioglu also talked about the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, an issue that the United Nations had warned about many times. United Nations relief agencies have said that millions of Afghans are at risk of starvation and famine.

The Taliban has called concerns of the United Nations about the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan as "negative propaganda". Despite the warning of the United Nations, this group has stopped or limited the activities of non-governmental organisations such as the Swedish Committee for Afghanistan.