Turkish FM meets Taliban delegation, discusses importance of including ethnic groups in govt

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Thursday met with senior Taliban delegation in Ankara and talked about the importance of including people in the interim government in Afghanistan, from ethnic groups other than the Taliban.

This was the first meeting of its kind since the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August.

"We gave advice to the Taliban administration. We once again said they should be inclusive for the unity of the country. We talked about the importance of including people in the administration from ethnic groups other than the Taliban," Cavusoglu told Anadolu Agency, as quoted by the Xinhua.

He made these remarks after he met with the Taliban delegation led by Afghanistan's acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi.

This statement comes as the Taliban has announced the members of its interim government, the list of which excludes women and other members of the minority communities.

Cavusoglu also advocated for education for girls and employment of women, saying that "We said this is not just a demand from Western countries, but also the advice of the Islamic world."

Turkey also conveyed expectations of the country and the International Civil Aviation Organization concerning security for the resumption of regular flights from Kabul, Cavusoglu noted.

The visit comes after the Taliban talks with the United States, and the European Union in Qatar this week.

The Taliban on Tuesday had said that western countries have remained silent in response to the request to unfreeze foreign Afghan assets in international banks.

"Today, the Afghan government delegation met with representatives of the United States and about 15 European countries, including Norway, Italy, Germany, France, the UK, Sweden. We discussed well-known problems -- human rights, women's rights, the creation of a safe corridor for entry and exit from the country, as well as unfreezing Afghan foreign assets, which are the money of the people," Taliban spokesperson Mohammad Naeem told Sputnik after the meeting in Qatar with the EU delegation.

"It is the right of the people to return this money. However, we have not received any answer yet, they are silent and do not give us any answer. They mention the provision of humanitarian aid for certain amounts, but that's all temporary solutions," he said.

There is a difference between humanitarian and political issues, but ordinary people should not suffer from problems in politics, the spokesperson added.

(ANI)

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