The Taliban on Tuesday claimed progress on women’s rights and security issues at a two-day international conference on Afghanistan in Tashkent. Representatives from over 20 countries, including the United States, India, Iran, and Pakistan, attended the summit, which seeks to address humanitarian and security concerns in the country.
Afghan Foreign Minister (FM) Amir Khan Muttaqi said the Taliban has made “invaluable achievements” since they came to power on August 15, 2021. Addressing the conference, Muttaqi the new government has managed to “establish security” and “provided basic services to citizens.”
Saying it has pursued a policy of “tolerance and acceptance” for almost a year, the FM noted that the Taliban has promoted diversity and inclusivity. Keeping this in mind, he blamed the US for imposing harsh economic sanctions and waging a two-decade war against the Taliban for Afghanistan’s woes. “These actions have not only hampered foreign investment and financial transactions, but also impacted government activities which purely benefit the general public,” Muttaqi said.
Biden would be wrong to fund the Taliban sneakily through an escrow-account.
— Amir Taheri (@AmirTaheri4) July 26, 2022
The so-called international conference on Afghanistan, held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, was diplomatic hypocrisy on parade.
Representatives of a terrorist gang were treated as officials of a nation-state.
“But despite these challenges, our government has managed to provide education, health, economic and other services within its capacity,” Muttaqi added, noting that the Taliban has opened schools and universities and added thousands of jobs to the education sector.
“Similarly, women continue to work in education, health and other government departments in a reassuring atmosphere. In some areas where proper environment has not yet been established, women are getting paid salaries in their homes,” he emphasised.
The FM declared that the Taliban is determined to bring peace and stability to Afghanistan and the world. “We seek stability for both us and the world. Stability in Afghanistan not only guarantees stability in the entire region, but Afghan stability is a key cog for regional economic prosperity and development,” he proclaimed.
In addition, Muttaqi claimed that Afghan security forces “have made good progress against Daesh [Islamic State]” and that the Taliban intends on keeping its promise to the international community that no group will be allowed to use Afghan soil to launch terrorist attacks against another country.
Uzbekistan: Amir Khan Muttaqi, Taliban's acting foreign minister, leading the delegation from Kabul at Tashkent international conference on Afghanistan, mingling with media following today's events. Video @UzReport. pic.twitter.com/PcIuaiLBss
— Navbahor Imamova (@Navbahor) July 26, 2022
Taking all of this into consideration, Muttaqi called on the US to “unconditionally release all reserves of the Afghan central bank and lift all economic sanctions on Afghanistan.” He stressed, “This is a fundamental step towards normalisation of relations, and this action will have a positive impact on the mindset of Afghans vis-a-vis America.”
He also called on the international community to establish diplomatic ties with Afghanistan. “It is now time for the world to invest in Afghan stability instead of insecurity and destabilisation. Stability is in the interest of everyone, and instability detrimental for all,” he pleaded.
In fact, according to a report by Reuters, US and Taliban officials have exchanged proposals for releasing billions of dollars from Afghan central bank reserves held abroad into a trust fund. However, it noted that “significant differences” between both sides remain.
A Taliban official told the news agency that while the group has agreed to the concept of setting up a trust fund, it has rejected a US proposal of the fund being controlled by a third party. The US has already proposed that the World Bank could administer the fund.
US Special Representative for Afghanistan Thomas West said during the conference in Tashkent that unblocking funds to the country depends on whether the Taliban takes steps to “professionalise the central bank [and] to enhance anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing architecture and its independence.”
#Uzbekistan’s acting Minister of Foreign Affairs meets with his #Taliban counterpart in #Tashkent today, which is holding a third #conference on #Afghanistan since 2018. Title now is “Afghanistan - security and economic development”. Taliban officially attending the conference. pic.twitter.com/PcnG1cHEdr
— Oybek Shaykhov (@OShaykhov) July 26, 2022
Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, too, has urged the US and the international community to help Afghanistan overcome its “deep socio-economic and humanitarian crisis.” “It is important to prevent the international isolation of Afghanistan, which will inevitably lead to a further deterioration of the humanitarian situation. We are talking about the fate of millions of people,” Mirziyoyev said at the conference.
The Uzbek Foreign Ministry also called on the US to release Afghanistan’s frozen foreign reserves. Foreign Minister Vladimir Norov said unblocking the reserves would help the country’s economic recovery and alleviate the humanitarian crisis.
Following the Taliban’s seizure of power last year, the US froze nearly $9.5 billion in assets belonging to the Afghan central bank and imposed sanctions on the Taliban, preventing the group from accessing the frozen funds and accepting international payments. Washington said the funds would only be released if the Taliban takes comprehensive steps to promote human rights and ensure that terrorists do not use the country.
An Afghan girl sprays graffiti on a wall in Afghanistan under the Taliban. #BanTaliban pic.twitter.com/636eWNbwBK
— Habib Khan (@HabibKhanT) July 26, 2022
However, despite promising to be more inclusive, the Taliban has taken several regressive steps, especially regarding women’s rights. In May, the Taliban issued a decree ordering all Afghan women to cover their faces from head to toe in public spaces. Two months earlier, the group said it would not allow girls to attend high school because it goes against Islamic Sharia law.
The Taliban has also denied women from working in government offices, banned women from boarding flights without a male guardian, prevented them from visiting parks on the same days as men, and prevented them from obtaining driving licenses.
These moves put the group at odds with the international community, which has been urging the Taliban to take measures to protect minorities, women, and children as a precondition for any recognition of its government and relaxation of sanctions.