The US special envoy for Afghanistan, Thomas West, said Washington has not seen significant steps towards normalization with the Islamic Emirate.
In a special interview with TOLOnews, West stated that the current Afghan government lacks a permanent representative at the UN and official ties with international financial institutions.
“We have not seen significant steps towards normalization with the Taliban, They do not have a permanent representative sitting in New York at the United Nations, they do not have formal relationships with international financial institutions, they do not have diplomats serving abroad in the West, they do not have access to suspended assets in foreign countries and I do not envision that we will budge on any of these issues until they make more responsible decisions,” West noted.
Speaking during the interview, West further said that despite all the concerns Washington has about the current government’s policies toward the Afghan people, it also wants to engage with Kabul.
“We are engaging with the Taliban ourselves despite some of what I have said here today that reflects our grave concern about the Taliban’s policies toward the Afghan people. We do favor a policy of engagement ourselves, that is why I met with the Taliban leaders in December, I suspect that I will meet Taliban leaders in the future and talk about our interests in Afghanistan,” he added.
The US special envoy for Afghanistan noted that Washington calls for dialogue between Afghans.
“What we want to see is the emergence of a dialogue among Afghans inside of Afghanistan to begin with who have genuine support in their communities with the Taliban in a structured and serious and organized fashion, to talk about the future of the country, to talk about a constitution, to talk about the basic rights of Afghans–that process has not unfolded in any serious manner,” West noted.
“The relationship of America and other countries with the interim administration of the Taliban will get better when changes are being made in the four basic areas. First, the fundamental rights of the Afghan people need to be respected. Second, it’s important to protect women’s and girls’ fundamental rights, including their ability to work and attend school,” said Nematullah Bizhanpor, an international relations expert.
However, the Islamic Emirate said that effective steps have been taken to maintain the relations between the two countries.
The Islamic Emirate’s spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid, said that the US is seeking excuses for Afghanistan’s internal affairs and is preventing the normalization of relations.
“The US representatives were in touch with us and are still; they have to make clear what they want from the Islamic Emirate. The Islamic Emirate has taken all possible steps to maintain the bilateral relationship and is prepared to shift its policies from one of conflict to one of peace and collaboration,” Mujahid noted.
The Islamic Emirate has previously said that despite having fulfilled all its commitments to the United States, Washington has not fulfilled its promises to the Islamic Emirate.
