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World wary of Taliban govt as Afghans urge action on rights, economy
Foreign countries greeted the makeup of the new government in Afghanistan with caution and dismay on Wednesday after the Taliban appointed hardline veteran figures to an all-male cabinet, including several with a U.S. bounty on their heads.
As the newly appointed ministers and their deputies set to work after they were named late on Tuesday, acting Premier Mohammad Hasan Akhund urged former officials who fled Afghanistan to return, saying their safety would be guaranteed.
“We have suffered heavy losses for this historic moment and the era of bloodshed in Afghanistan is over,” he told Al Jazeera.
Tens of thousands of people left after the Taliban seized power in mid-August following a lightning military campaign, many of them professionals fearing reprisals because of their association with the Western-backed government, Reuters reported.
In Kabul, dozens of women took to the streets again to demand representation in the new administration and for their rights to be protected.
More broadly, people urged the leadership to revive the Afghan economy, which faces steep inflation, food shortages exacerbated by drought and the prospect of international aid being slashed as countries distance themselves from the Taliban, Reuters reported.
The United States underscored its wariness on Wednesday. “This is a caretaker Cabinet,” White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters. “No one in this administration, not the president nor anyone on the national security team, would suggest that the Taliban are respected and valued members of the global community.”
The Taliban’s announcement of a new government on Tuesday was widely seen as a signal they were not looking to broaden their base and present a more tolerant face to the world, Reuters reported.
Afghanistan’s Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi met with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Thursday in Tehran during an official visit.
According to Iranian media reports, the two diplomats discussed bilateral relations, recent regional developments, and issues of mutual interest.
Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, Prime Minister of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), has inspected the construction work of the second lane of the Kabul–Jalalabad highway, Arg said on Thursday.
According to Arg’s statement , the Prime Minister visited the project site earlier in the day and expressed appreciation for the efforts of the Ministry of Public Works, project officials, and private contracting companies involved in the construction process. He also issued directives for the timely and high-quality completion of the project.
Akhund said the completion of the highway would significantly improve transportation facilities, transit operations, passenger movement, and contribute to economic growth in the surrounding regions.
Officials report that construction work on the second section of the project, covering 32 kilometers from the Kabul side, is currently about 20 percent complete.
Meanwhile, work on the first 22-kilometer section from the Nangarhar side is also ongoing. Surveying and design work for the third section is being carried out by a private company, with construction expected to begin after completion of the preparatory phase.
The Kabul–Jalalabad second-lane highway is regarded as one of Afghanistan’s key transport and economic infrastructure projects and is being developed in three phases.
Senior officials from the foreign ministries of Afghanistan and Russia held consultations in Kabul, focusing on expanding bilateral cooperation and strengthening regional engagement involving Afghanistan.
According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the meeting was held between A.V. Pavlovsky, Director of the Second Asia Department of Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Abdul Hai Qanit, Director of the Third Political Department at Afghanistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The two sides discussed cooperation in the political, economic, cultural, and humanitarian fields, as well as ways to strengthen regional interaction with Afghanistan’s participation.
The consultations underscore ongoing diplomatic engagement between Moscow and Kabul as the two countries continue to explore closer cooperation on regional and bilateral issues.
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