Donor Meeting For Afghanistan Begins In Dubai

Decker said that the US policy toward Afghanistan will not change with the departure of Special Representative Tom West.

Tom West, the US special representative for Afghanistan, stepped down this week after three years. The US State Department has announced that West will continue to work on the State Department's sanctions department.

"I have been asked to take on the responsibilities of the US special envoy for Afghanistan," Decker told reporters at Thursday's meeting.

In response to a question from Afghanistan International, Decker explained her priorities, "The future of Afghanistan should be determined by the Afghans themselves and through a process in their hands."

"It is my great responsibility to be the voice of Afghans who have been deprived of their right to expression," the US diplomat added.

She also said that the United States will continue to engage with the Taliban administration in a practical and principled manner.

She praised the three-year mission of Tom West, adding that addressing the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan has been one of West's achievements.

Decker added that since the fall of the previous Afghan government, the United States has provided $2.3 billion in humanitarian aid to Afghanistan.

In another part of her speech, Decker told Afghanistan International that Washington will not participate in next week's Moscow meeting. She said that there are many regional meetings on Afghanistan that the United States does not have to participate in all of them, but she will follow these talks.

The outlet reported on Thursday, October 3, that 232 families had been deported from Iran and 67 families from Pakistan.

The Taliban-controlled Bakhtar News Agency reported that the families had returned to Afghanistan from the Torkham, Spin Boldak, Pul-e-Abrisham and Islam Qala crossings.

This comes as the deportation of Afghan refugees from Pakistan and Iran has increased sharply in recent months. Many Afghan immigrants complain about the harsh living conditions and deportation process in these two countries.

Rudenko said that the BRICS countries have not yet reached a consensus for the presence of a Taliban representative in the meeting.

Russian state news agency TASS reported on Thursday (October 3) that Andrei Rondko had said that the invitation to the guests would be done with the consensus of the BRICS countries.

Declaring that there is still no agreement on the Taliban's participation, he added that nothing can be ruled out.

The BRICS summit is scheduled to be held from October 22 to 24 in the Russian city of Kazan.

A few days ago, Russia's state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported that the Taliban had sent a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin's aide Yuri Ushakov asking him to attend the BRICS leaders' meeting. The letter states that Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban's deputy prime minister, is interested in attending the BRICS meeting in the city of Kazan.

The main members of the BRICS group include Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. The group expanded with the membership of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Iran and Ethiopia at the beginning of this year.

On Wednesday, September 25, Zabihullah Mujahid told the Taliban-controlled National Radio and Television of Afghanistan that powerful countries in the field of economy are members of the BRICS, and that is why Taliban representatives want to participate in the upcoming meeting. He added that the move could provide more opportunities for Afghanistan.

The Taliban is still considered a terrorist group in Russia. However, Moscow has diplomatic relations with the Taliban, and Amir Khan Muttaqi, the Taliban's foreign minister, is currently in Moscow to attend a meeting on Afghanistan. The Moscow format meeting on Afghanistan will be held on October 4.

The group said that the Taliban had illegally detained Kohistani and Arian and they should be released immediately.

Amnesty International wrote on its official page on the X social media network on Thursday, that the Taliban's retaliatory measures violate Afghanistan's obligations under international human rights law.

On the other hand, the Afghanistan Journalists Support Organisation said in a statement that journalists and media workers in Afghanistan face serious threats and dangers compared to other parts of the world. The organisation stressed that journalists in Afghanistan are under pressure, censorship, torture and threats from the Taliban.

Earlier, the Afghanistan Journalists Centre announced that Hekmat Aryan was arrested by the Taliban intelligence agency from his office in Ghazni city on Sunday, September 29.

"Aryan has been accused of speaking in an audio tape about the Taliban's suicide operations in past wars and broadcasting them on the radio," the Afghanistan Journalists Centre said in a statement on Wednesday.

However, the Journalists Support Organisation says that journalists in Afghanistan currently do not have the right to work independence, freedom of expression, economic support, and the necessary facilities to inform the public. The organisation called on international institutions and human rights organisations to prevent the Taliban's mistreatment of journalists.

Washington has said that with the end of the term of the US special representative for Afghanistan, Thomas West, Karen Decker and US envoy for women and human rights, Rina Amiri, will carry out his duties.

On Thursday, Decker announced that she looks forward to continuing to work with Mark Pommersheim and continue West's effective work to protect US interests.

Earlier, Antony Blinken, the US Secretary of State announced that West would step down as the US special representative for Afghanistan and would be appointed as the acting head of the State Department's Sanctions Coordination Office.

Blinken did not elaborate on West's successor, but stressed that Afghanistan will continue to be led by Karen Decker, Chargé d'Affaires of the US Embassy for Afghanistan, Rina Amiri, Special Representative for Women, Girls and Human Rights in Afghanistan, and John Mark Pommersheim, former US ambassador to the Republic of Tajikistan.

US Secretary of State praised Thomas West's role over the past four years, stating that he has implemented US policies in Afghanistan well.

The US State Department had previously stressed that "the US commitment to Afghanistan remains an enduring priority".