A US delegation will hold talks with Taliban representatives from Saturday for the first time since the withdrawal from Afghanistan, the State Department said on Friday.
The US team will meet with senior Taliban officials on Saturday and Sunday in Doha, Qatar, a State Department spokesperson said.
The United States has maintained contacts with the new rulers of Afghanistan after taking Kabul in August, but this will be the first meeting to be held in person.
“We will push for the Taliban to respect the rights of all Afghans, including women and girls, and form an inclusive government with broad support,” the spokesperson said.
“As Afghanistan faces the possibility of a severe economic recession and a humanitarian crisis, we will also push for the Taliban to grant humanitarian agencies free access to areas in difficulty,” he said. he adds.
About 100 Americans still in Afghanistan
The meeting in Doha does not in any way mean that the United States recognizes the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, insisted the State Department. “We continue to make it clear that all legitimacy must be earned through the actions of the Taliban,” the spokesperson said.
American representatives will also insist on Joe Biden’s priority to obtain the departure from Afghanistan of American and Afghan citizens who have helped the United States military during the 20 years of conflict.
Washington noted that the Taliban have so far cooperated to facilitate the departure of US nationals. About 100 are still in Afghanistan, most of them Americans with close ties to Afghanistan and who have yet to decide to leave the country, according to US officials.
The spokesperson did not specify the composition of the two delegations sent to Doha. Senior US officials, including General Frank McKenzie, had met Taliban officials in Kabul in August.
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