No rush to recognise Taliban rule: Fawad

Just a day after the fall of the Afghan capital, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry on Monday said Pakistan would consult the international community before recognising Taliban’s rule in the war-ravaged country.

Fawad linked the recognition of the new rulers of Afghanistan to what the world community has to say about it. “We will take steps in this regard in consultation with the international community,” the government spokesperson told The Express Tribune, while responding to a question if Pakistan was ready to recognise the new Afghan government.

Though the country’s top civil and military leadership participated in the National Security Committee (NSC) meeting on Monday but the official statement released after the meeting did not say anything on the question of recognising the Taliban rule.

The NSC meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan and attended by senior cabinet members and services chiefs, resolved that Pakistan would remain committed to “an inclusive political settlement as the way forward representing all Afghan ethnic groups”.

The NSC called for respecting the rule of law, protecting fundamental human rights and ensuring that Afghan soil was not used for any terrorist activity. Apparently, officials closely monitoring the Afghan situation said Pakistan had adopted a wait-and-see policy on the recognition of Taliban rule.

They added that Pakistan was keenly monitoring what stance the international community, especially, the US, China and Russia take before making an announcement in this regard. However, as Taliban seized control, China “welcomed” the chance to deepen ties with Afghanistan.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said that the Taliban had repeatedly expressed the hope for developing good relations with China, and that they looked forward to China’s participation in the reconstruction and development of their country.

The spokesperson stressed that China respected the right of the Afghan people to independently determine their own destiny and was willing to develop friendly and cooperative relations with Afghanistan.

On reports suggesting that China was ready to recognise the Taliban as a legitimate government, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Washington would recognise a future government in Afghanistan only if it upheld basic rights of its people and kept terrorists out of the country.

The unexpected speed of the Taliban taking over Afghanistan has stunned the world as no one was expecting that the militiamen would simply stroll into the marbled halls of the presidential palace in Kabul unopposed.

On Sunday morning, panic gripped Kabul when the Taliban fighters started arriving in the Afghan capital. By afternoon, the American-backed-government crumbled, when Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled abroad.

The situation in Afghanistan has changed rapidly, since US announced troop withdrawal. Soon after the announcement, conflicts between Taliban and the Afghan government forces intensified and the security situation in the war-battered country deteriorated within no time.

Since the Afghan security forces offered no resistance, the Taliban started seizing control of Afghan provinces one after the other and within a week’s time, Ghani exited and Taliban entered Kabul.