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EU envoy hopes dialogue among Afghans takes place inside the country
The European Union’s special envoy for Afghanistan, Tomas Niklasson, has expressed hope that dialogue among Afghans will take place inside their country.
“I would hope that dialogue can take place inside their country. I don’t think there is a need to exclude Afghans from outside, but I think my experience is that to be able to have a meaningful dialogue you need to sit down face to face and engage over time, and that is lot much easier if you are in the same place,” Niklasson told reporters in Kabul on Sunday, after meeting officials of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) during his visit to the country.
“It is clear, I think, who would be on one side of the table, and that is of course the de facto authorities. It is more difficult to decide or to find a way of who should represent other Afghans. In fact, I don’t think we should necessarily think about this as a table with two sides. I think we should think about it more as a roundtable where you have different interests, different political interests, different ethnic origins, men and women who can come together,” Niklasson added.
The diplomat also said that the ban on women’s work in NGOs raises a “serious obstacle” to assistance reaching women and children.
“A harsh winter is coming to an end, but the humanitarian situation remains worse than ever, with more than 28 million vulnerable Afghans in need of assistance, more than half of them are children below the age of 17,” Niklasson said.
On the issue of ban on secondary schoolgirls and female university students, the envoy said that he did not hear any “firm commitment” that schools were going to open at the beginning of the school year which will commence in less than three weeks.
“Although many (ministers) confirmed the right of girls and women to study, I did not hear any firm commitment that schools were going to open at the beginning of the school year after Nowruz, despite very clear question from our side. But opening the schools and universities to provide quality education to Afghan boys and girls, women and men is not optional. It is a necessary investment in the future, in the next generation, in a better Afghanistan, and above all it is a request by all the Afghans we speak to,” Niklasson said.
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) announced Sunday that its delegation is attending the 15th summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in the Gambian capital Banjul.
The two-day summit of the heads of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation started on Saturday. World leaders from the 57 member countries of the OIC and beyond are expected to attend, said the OIC in a statement ahead of the summit.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement said that its spokesman and head of the department of international organizations of the ministry are representing the IEA at the OIC summit.
The statement said that in addition to participating in the general session, the delegation will meet with high-ranking officials of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and representatives of its member countries to discuss various issues.
Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi has welcomed Turkey’s move to suspend trade with Israel over its war on Gaza.
Muttaqi expressed his appreciation during a meeting with Turkish Charge d’Affaires Cenk Unal in Kabul, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement released Sunday.
The meeting also focused on bilateral relations, recent positive developments in Afghanistan, the visits of political and economic delegations to Afghanistan from several countries.
FM Muttaqi underlined the commencing of trade with Turkey through the Lapis Lazuli route and opening of joint exhibitions in Turkey and Afghanistan.
According to the statement, the Turkish envoy said that they are happy with the recent developments in Afghanistan, and joined efforts need to be made for the further expansion of Turkey-Afghanistan relations.
He added that in the next few days, Turkish Airlines will commence its flights to Kabul.
The two sides reiterated promoting synergy to meet the expectations of the people of the two countries, given the historical backdrops and good bilateral relations, the statement said.
The Islamic Emirate has announced the appointment of a delegation headed by Chief of the Army Staff Fasihuddin Fitrah, amid protests in Badakhshan province over the killing of a local resident by security forces during poppy crackdown.
Zabihullah Mujahid, the spokesman of the Islamic Emirate, emphasized in a statement that the decree banning poppy cultivation extends to all regions without exception.
“Regrettably, there have been incidents where offenders attempted to attack the security forces involved in the fight against poppy cultivation, resulting in tragic events,” he said.
The delegation includes Shamsuddin Shariati, the head of overseeing and monitoring directives and commands, Mullah Abdul Haq, deputy minister of narcotics control, Mullah Rahmatullah Najib, deputy general director of intelligence, and Abdul Momin, chairman of the Badakhshan Ulema Council.
Darayem district of Badakhshan has seen protests against the Islamic Emirate in recent days.
The Ministry of Interior has confirmed that one of the local people was killed in a clash with the forces tasked to destroy poppy fields in the district.
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