According to an exclusive report by Axios, Qatar has worked out a deal with the Taliban to resume evacuation flights from the Kabul international airport. Qatari Foreign Minister (FM) and Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al Thani told the news website on Tuesday that Doha and Kabul ended a months-long dispute over evacuations that led to a halt in flights.
As per the agreement, the Taliban will allow two flights per week charted by Qatar Airways to evacuate foreign citizens as well as Afghans. Furthermore, both sides are also considering to allow Afghanistan’s Ariana Afghan Airlines to operate one flight per week.
The FM’s announcement came as Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani met American President Joe Biden in Washington on Monday. During the meeting, Biden announced his intention to designate Qatar as a “major non-NATO ally,” a move that would allow Doha special economic and military privileges in its relationship with Washington, including eligibility for loan programmes and priority delivery for certain military sales.
Biden also praised Qatar’s role in the Afghanistan evacuation efforts. In fact, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said that the decision was due to its “extraordinary support” in hosting and relocating individuals evacuated from Afghanistan “whether they’re US citizens, [...] lawful permanent residents, or [...] Afghans to whom we have a special commitment.”
In this regard, Price noted that the US-Qatar relationship “has never been stronger” due to their “extraordinary partnership across any number of challenges.”
Moreover, Turkey, Qatar and the Taliban government have drawn up an agreement earlier this month, whereby both Ankara and Doha will provide security to Kabul’s international airport and provide financial support for the airport’s maintenance.
Qatar played a crucial role in evacuation efforts after the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan last year. It has evacuated thousands of Afghans from the war-torn country and has aided the US in the airlift of thousands of refugees and American citizens. Doha has also resettled hundreds of Afghan civilians, including an all-female Afghan robotics team that won the Gulf country international praise.
Qatar has also been seeking closer ties with the Taliban. Qatar began directly engaging with the Taliban in 2013 when the militants established a diplomatic office in Doha to participate in direct talks with the US. Since then, Qatar has played a crucial role in facilitating negotiations between the US and the Taliban and was instrumental in getting both sides to sign the 2020 Doha Agreement, under which the US agreed to completely withdraw its troops by 2021.