The Islamabad International Conference on Afghanistan said Pashtuns, who make up 42% of the population, hold power, while the remaining 58%, including Tajiks, Hazaras, Uzbeks and Turkmens, are excluded.
The statement said the Taliban administration was neither inclusive nor legitimate, adding that excluding a large part of society from power created conditions for structural instability.
The international conference, titled Afghan Predicament and the Trajectory to Peace, was held in Islamabad on 29 and 30 September.
Maria Sultan, president of the South Asian Strategic Stability Institute, presented the conference’s final statement.
The statement said Afghanistan was facing a dual crisis of a non-inclusive and unrepresentative government, while also alleging that the Taliban administration provided safe havens for terrorist groups.
The Islamabad conference said Afghanistan was now facing three fundamental challenges concerning legitimacy, capacity and inclusion.
It said excluding different groups from government created structural instability. The statement added that cohesion within the Taliban regime did not amount to national cohesion and argued that the Taliban system was illegitimate not merely because it lacked recognition, but because of its structure.
The Taliban has described its government as inclusive, saying people from different ethnic groups are represented within its institutions. Critics, however, say the presence of individuals from different ethnic backgrounds does not necessarily amount to political participation by ethnic and social groups in major decision-making.
Current Government Does Not Represent Afghans
In the section titled the Islamabad Declaration 2026, participants said the current Taliban government did not represent the people of Afghanistan.
The document said that control does not mean legitimacy; the absence of war does not mean peace; and regime cohesion does not mean national cohesion.
The declaration also said genuine change was not possible within the Taliban’s current framework and argued that a government excluding women and minorities could not guarantee stability, development or respect for human rights.
Participants called for power to be returned to the Afghan people through the establishment of an inclusive, balanced and modern government.
Warning Over Girls’ Education And Expansion Of Religious Schools
Another section of the statement focused on Taliban restrictions on women and girls.
The document said depriving women and girls of education, employment and parts of public life was among the factors weakening Afghanistan’s capacity.
It also warned about the expansion of religious schools, saying their number had risen to around 22,000 over the past five years, compared with about 18,000 regular schools.
Participants said Afghanistan’s education system should provide religious education alongside science, technology, vocational training and critical thinking.
The declaration described the exclusion of women, who make up roughly half of Afghanistan’s population, as strategic suicide, saying that without women’s participation and an inclusive political system, the younger generation could not be protected from poverty, extremism and violence.
Concern Over Presence Of Armed Groups
The Islamabad conference also warned about the presence and activities of armed groups in Afghanistan.
The statement said more than 20 groups had safe havens in Afghanistan and that their continued activities could have security consequences for Pakistan, Iran, Central Asia, Russia, China and other countries.
The Taliban has denied the presence of terrorist groups in Afghanistan and has repeatedly said it will not allow Afghan territory to be used against other countries.
The declaration called for the establishment of a joint monitoring mechanism involving the United Nations, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation to assess commitments related to preventing safe havens, recruitment and financing for armed groups.
Criticism Of International Community
Participants at the Islamabad conference also criticised the international community’s approach towards Afghanistan.
The statement said there was a contradiction between the principles set out in the charters of the United Nations, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and the “tolerance” of Afghanistan’s current situation.
It said engagement with the Taliban without clear benchmarks had failed and argued that any future engagement should be linked to criteria concerning women’s education and employment, political participation, citizens’ rights and efforts against armed groups.
The declaration also called for greater transparency in international aid, saying assistance should reach families directly, particularly women and children.
The Islamabad Declaration 2026 concluded that Afghanistan’s crisis was not solely a matter concerning the government in Kabul but was also linked to what it described as unfulfilled responsibilities of the region and the international community.
Participants warned that ignoring what they called Afghanistan’s non-Taliban majority could become a strategic failure, with security and humanitarian consequences extending beyond Afghanistan’s borders.
Using the phrase Kabul governs, Kandahar commands, the statement said key decision-making within the Taliban structure was concentrated under the group’s leader in Kandahar.
In the statement it is said that forty-two per cent, the Pashtuns, govern, while 58 per cent, including Tajiks, Hazaras, Uzbeks and Turkmens, are excluded.
