National and regional special envoys to Afghanistan convened in Doha on Sunday in the second UN meeting of its kind in less than a year, though it remained unclear whether Taliban authorities would join the closed-session event. The two-day meeting, hosted by the UN secretary general, was due to discuss increasing engagement with Afghanistan and a more coordinated response to the Central Asian nation.
In the aftermath of the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan in 2021, the international community has wrestled with its approach to the country’s new rulers. On the first day of the convention in gas-rich Qatar, which hosted the Taliban during years of peace talks with the United States, the Kabul government’s participation remained unclear. Though the Afghan foreign ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment on plans to attend, the secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that it was “disappointing that the Taliban declined to attend the special envoy meeting”.
“We urge all sides to do more to hammer out deals that can benefit the long-suffering Afghan people,” Jan Egeland said. The UN had extended an invitation to the Taliban authorities to participate, following their exclusion from the first meeting in May. Organisers pushed to include voices from civil society inside and outside Afghanistan including women and from the media and businesses at the Doha convention.—Agencies
