The Taliban’s first official talks with the West on European soil since seizing power in Afghanistan will help to “transform the atmosphere of war” after a two-decade insurgency against North Atlantic Treaty Organisation forces, the group’s top spokesperson told AFP on Saturday.
The group stormed back to power in August as US and foreign troops began their final withdrawal from the country following a stalemate on the battlefield. “The Islamic Emirate has taken steps for meeting the demands of the Western world and we hope to strengthen our relations through diplomacy with all the countries, including European countries and the West in general,” Zabihullah Mujahid said on Saturday.
The Taliban want to “transform the atmosphere of war … into a peaceful situation.”
Talks between the Taliban and Western officials will open in Oslo on Sunday on human rights and humanitarian aid as a poverty crisis deepens in Afghanistan.
The humanitarian situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated drastically since the Taliban’s takeover. International aid came to a sudden halt and the US has frozen $9.5 billion in Afghan central bank assets held overseas.
Hunger now threatens 23 million Afghans, or 55 per cent of the population, according to the UN, which says it needs $5bn from donor countries this year to address the humanitarian crisis in the country. The visit from Sunday to Tuesday will see meetings between the Taliban, Norwegian authorities and officials from a number of allied countries including Britain, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy and the US, the Norwegian foreign ministry statement said.
The Taliban delegation is also expected to meet Afghans from civil society, including women leaders and journalists, at a time when the freedoms of those living in Afghanistan are being increasingly curtailed. –AFP
