The Taliban’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has stated in a newsletter that Amir Khan Muttaqi, the Foreign Minister of the group, met with Zamir Kabulov, Russia’s special representative for Afghanistan, in Kabul. During this meeting, Amir Khan Muttaqi once again expressed his opposition to the appointment of a special envoy for Afghanistan by the United Nations. The Taliban’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, quoting Muttaqi, stated that the conditions for appointing a special envoy for Afghanistan by the United Nations are not currently favorable. Muttaqi also added that they are engaged in discussions with the United Nations and will announce their position after “sufficient clarification” regarding the agenda and composition of future talks in Doha.
The Taliban claimed in this meeting that their relations with regional countries are “growing” and that they currently have “active embassies” with “almost all regional countries.”
Meanwhile, this senior Taliban official has considered their relations with Russia important and emphasized that the realities of Afghanistan must be understood.
However, the Taliban’s newsletter, quoting Kabulov, states that any talks without the presence of the Taliban are “fruitless.”
The Russian representative also stressed the importance of the Taliban’s presence in international meetings, adding, “Without the Taliban’s consent, this series cannot yield results.”
Kabulov said, “World governments should maintain their relations with the Taliban through bilateral mechanisms instead of using multilateral contact mechanisms.”
He once again called for the release of Afghanistan’s frozen assets by the United States, stating that America must end its “unilateral and illegal sanctions” and fulfill its obligations.
Despite the Taliban’s opposition to the appointment of a special envoy for Afghanistan, Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the UN Secretary-General, has stated that work is underway to appoint a special representative for Afghanistan by the United Nations. There is no specific timeline for the appointment of a special UN representative for Afghanistan.
Earlier, the Taliban were not invited to a meeting held in Doha to appoint a special envoy for Afghanistan by the United Nations.