Afghanistan govt condemns Taliban delegation's visit to Turkmenistan; issues statement

After a Taliban delegation recently visited Turkmenistan's capital and met Foreign Ministry officials in Ashgabat, the Afghanistan government on Monday issued a statement. Stating that Afghanistan's Foreign Affairs Ministry had learned through media about the Taliban delegation's visit to Turkmenistan, the country said that the Taliban delegation is travelling to the regional countries at a time when the group's brutal attacks in recent months have killed more than 3,500 people. 

Afghanistan Foreign Ministry issues a statement

The Afghanistan government said, "The Taliban group's recent brutal attacks have killed more than 3.500 people, displaced more than 2,00,000 of our compatriots, disrupted public order and life, and economic activities in tens of districts."

The Afghanistan Foreign Ministry in its statement said that the country is commending all efforts to strengthen the Afghan peace process. Afganistan also remarked that it believes that bringing an end to the war in the country is possible only through a political settlement that emanates from genuine peace talks. 

While appreciating the support of its regional and international partners to the Afghan peace process, the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan expects that these efforts are made in direct consultation with the Afghan government and concentrated on strengthening regional and international consensus to establish a permanent ceasefire, severing the Taliban’s ties with regional terrorists and end the war in Afghanistan.

Taliban Delegation visits Turkmenistan

The Taliban delegation visited Turkmenistan's capital and met Foreign Ministry officials in Ashgabat. The Taliban delegation visited Ashgabat in response to Turkmenistan's invitation. The two sides discussed “bilateral, economic and political ties between the two nations, as well as issues of border.

The meeting comes amid grave concerns in Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan over the Taliban’s escalating attacks in northern Afghanistan. The talks took place on July 10 in Ashgabat, where the Taliban team was led by Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, head of the group’s political office in Qatar. The Turkmen side had asked Taliban representatives to keep the talks a secret, as it did not want to anger Kabul.

Meanwhile, the Taliban were reportedly urged to eschew attacking Turkmenistan’s territory and block the possible flow of refugees into the Central Asian country.

(Image: AP)