Afghan stakeholders to meet in Oslo

FO says Khar to undertake visits to Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Belgium from June 5 to 13

ISLAMABAD:

Senior officials from western countries and other Afghan stakeholders are set to meet in Norway’s capital Oslo this month to discuss the latest Afghan situation and review progress of the interim government regarding fulfilment of the promises made with the international community.

The meeting in Oslo is seen as the latest push by the international community to find ways to remain engaged with the interim Afghan government despite concerns that it has failed to fulfill commitments, according to sources familiar with the development.

A Pakistani delegation led by Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar is expected to attend the meeting in Oslo. Newly-appointed Special Representative on Afghanistan Ambassador Asif Ali Durrani will also accompany the minister.

A statement issued by the Foreign Office said that the minister of state for foreign affairs will undertake official visits to Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Belgium from June 5 to 13.

She will hold meetings at the ministerial level to discuss political engagement and cooperation in development, trade and climate change. She will also meet lawmakers and local entrepreneurs. In Belgium, she will hold meetings with Members of the European Parliament and senior officials of the European Commission.

In Sweden, the minister of state will attend the Annual Meeting of the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) as a keynote speaker. She will present Pakistan’s perspective on issues of regional and global importance and interact with leading European decision-makers, experts, think-tanks and influencers for debates on foreign policy priorities and challenges.

There is no word, however, on her participation in the meeting on Afghanistan.

Earlier, the Qatari prime minister held secret talks with the supreme leader of the Taliban this month on resolving tension with the international community.

The May 12 meeting in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar between Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani and Haibatullah Akhunzada is the first the reclusive Taliban chief is known to have held with a foreign leader.

US President Joe Biden's administration was briefed on the talks and is "coordinating on all issues discussed" by the pair, including furthering dialogue with the Taliban, according to Reuters.

The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that other issues Sheikh Mohammed raised with Haibatullah included the need to end Taliban bans on girls' education and women's employment.

The meeting represents a diplomatic success for Qatar, which has criticised Taliban restrictions on women while using long-standing ties with the Islamist movement to push for deeper engagement with Kabul by the international community.

The United States has led demands for the Taliban to end the bans on girls' schooling and women working, including for UN agencies and humanitarian groups, to restore their freedom of movement and bring Afghans from outside Taliban ranks into government.

The source's comments suggested that Washington supported elevating what have been unproductive lower-level talks in the hope of a breakthrough that could end the world's only bans of their kind and ease dire humanitarian and financial crises that have left tens of millions of Afghans hungry and jobless.