Russia has urged the Taliban to live up to international “expectations” on human rights if the group seeks recognition by the international community.
During Moscow talks on Afghanistan in which the representatives of the Taliban were present, Kremlin envoy Zamir Kabulov said that the Taliban rule would be recognized when they “start fulfilling the expectations of the international community on human rights and inclusion.”
The Russian envoy said that the Taliban gave assurance to the participants of the negotiations in Moscow, including China and Pakistan, that the group was trying for the betterment of rights and governance issues.
Taliban representatives assured Kabulov that they “are working on improving governance and improving human rights”, to which Kabulov replied, “We’ll see.”
He also called on the international community to abandon its “bias” and unite to help the Afghan people.
The Russian official said, “Not everyone likes the new government in Afghanistan, but by punishing the government, we punish the whole people.”
He added that a joint statement from all 10 participating countries concluding the talks would call on the United Nations to convene a donor conference to raise funds for Afghanistan.
Taliban representatives did not immediately address reporters following Kabulov’s comments to journalists.
Deputy Prime Minister Abdul Salam Hanafi, a senior figure in the new Afghan leadership, however, said earlier on Wednesday that Afghanistan’s new leadership was “already inclusive”.
Hanafi said, “We don’t need foreign military aid, we need support for peace in Afghanistan, we need reconstruction and resettlement.”
