Talks with Taliban

                                                       

                The United States said on Monday that the weekend talks with the Taliban were candid and professional. During the weekend, the Biden administration held their first face to face meeting with Taliban in Doha since the withdrawal of US Troops from Afghanistan in late August 2021.

                On Monday a State Department Official told that on 9th and 10th of October an interagency US delegation travelled to the Quatari capital to meet senior Taliban representatives. The US delegation focused on security and terrorisms concerns and safe passage for US Citizens, other foreign national and our Afghan, partners, the department spokesperson Ned Price said. US Officials also focused on human rights, including the meaningful participation of women and girls in all aspect of Afghanistan society.

                The two sides also discussed the provision of robust US humanitarian assistance directly to the Afghan people, Mr. Price said. The discussion were candied and professional with the US delegation reiterating that the Taliban will be judged "on its actions, not only its words"  Mr,. Price did not specify if any agreements were made. Although the Taliban official spokes to various media outlets after the talks, they too offered few details.

                A previous statement from the Taliban's leadership said the meeting went well and acknowledged that the United State will continue to provide humanitarian support to Afghanistan but it would not formally recognize the Taliban. In another media engagement, Taliban Spokesperson Suhail Shaheen said that Afghanistan new leaders were committed to ensuring terrorism does not take root in Afghanistan again.

                Those comments came just two days after the militant Islamic State (Khorasan) group claimed responsibility for suicide bombing that left more than 100 people dead during noon prayer at the mosque of Afghanistan. On Sunday another State Department official described the US Taliban meeting as the continuation of Washington pragmatic engagement with the Taliban on the issue of vital national interest. The US however made it clear that this meeting was not about granting recognition of conferring legitimacy. We remain clear that any legitimacy must be earned through the Taliban's own action.

                The official said that US delegation included official from the Department of State, USAID, and other government agencies who met senior Taliban representative in Doha. He did not specify which agencies, but media reports from Doha claimed that the US delegation included intelligence officials. This meeting was continuation of the pragmatic engagements with the Talibans on the issues of US vital national interests, the State Department Officials said. Our key priorities  are the continued  safe passage out  of Afghanistan and US and other foreign nationals and Afghanistans to whom we have a special commitment and who seek to leave the country.

                The other key priorities the official said, was holding meeting with Taliban to its commitment not to allow terrorists to use Afghanistan soil to threaten the security of the United State or its allies. The United State, he said, would use the talks to reaffirm that we continue to hold the Taliban to their commitments and we will press the Taliban to respect the rights of all Afghans including woman and girls, and to form an inclusive government with broad support. The US Officials noted that Afghanistan face the prospect of severe economic contraction and possible humanitarian crises and the US Delegation pressed the Taliban to allow humanitarian agencies free access to the arears of need.