Taliban attends Doha meeting this time

All set for the 3rd round of UN-initiated Doha conference on Afghanistan situation. The Taliban delegations and representatives from foreign countries will attend the two-day conference in the capital city of Qatar from June 30 and first of July 2024. The Afghan civil society members are also invited. But before we deliver on expectation from this conference, here we take a glance at the second round of Doha conference which was held in February 2024.

Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed visited Afghanistan in January 2023. The visit had come at a time when the Taliban banned women from going to workplaces and girls from going to schools. Women, working for NGOs and even UN offices, were banned from attending office. Following her trip to Afghanistan at that time, Mohammed went to Kandahar province, the place where the Taliban supreme leader is residing, and met with the senior Taliban officials including Yusuf Wafa, the Taliban provincial governor.

After concluding her trip, Mohammed emphasized the need for a broad political approach in dealing with the Taliban and called on the Taliban to observe women’s rights including their rights to education and work.

In May 2023, the UN decided to arrange a broad-based meeting to discuss Afghanistan. UN Secretary-General Atonio Guterres also traveled to Doha and in a press briefing he called for the formation of an inclusive government and observation of women’s rights in Afghanistan.

The second Doha conference was held on May 1 and 2 and all the discussions were held behind doors. The meeting included envoys from 21 countries including US, Russia, China, Iran, Pakistan, Turkey, Japan, India, Indonesia, UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UK, France, Germany, Norway and Central Asian states such as Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan.  Representatives from the EU and Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) also participated in the conference. Four members of Afghan civil society were also in attendance, and they called for reopening girl’s schools and formation of such a government which is acceptable for all.

Taliban didn’t accept UN invitation for the second Doha Conference

The UN has said that they didn’t invite the Taliban in the first round of the conference, but they sent an invitation to the Taliban for the second Doha conference, in which the Talian denied their participation.

UN Secretary-General Atonio Guterres said that they didn’t invite the Taliban in the first round of the conference, but they sent an invitation to the Taliban for the second Doha conference.

Guterres said that it was not the right time to meet with the Taliban. Similarly other groups of the Afghan segment including civil society members, women rights activists, and the majority of foreign countries’ representatives were not invited in the first conference.

However, in the second round of talks, foreign representatives held four sessions in the two-day conference, where they discussed human rights issues, including women, and girls’ rights, inclusive governance, counterterrorism, and topics related to drug trafficking.

The aim behind these sessions was to achieve a collective view and develop an international approach regarding Afghanistan, but these meetings, according to Guterres, were not meant for recognition of the Taliban.

Taliban agreed to attend third Doha conference

The Taliban has shown green signal to attend the upcoming third Doha conference. The Taliban delegation has been invited to participate in the Doha meeting, Taliban Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi said, adding that Taliban is looking to create a positive relation with the West, including the US, EU, and the regional countries.

Muttaqi said that the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has been officially invited and “this invitation is a green signal for the growing possibility of recognition of the Taliban government by the international community”.

“We are seeking positive relations with EU countries, the US and our neighbors and the regional countries,” he added.

Taliban Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi said that Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has been officially invited to Doha Conference, and this invitation is a green signal for the growing possibility of recognition of the Taliban government by the international community. 

Muttaqi’s statement came when the international community still persisted in its demand and expressed concern about the lack of women’s and girl’s access to basic rights including education and participation of them in the political landscape of the country.

The third round of the meeting will be chaired by Rosemary DiCarlo, the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and DiCarlo is a US citizen and has been working in this post since 2018.

DiCarlo has visited Afghanistan two times and her first visit was in December 2021 just four months after US forces withdrawal and the collapse of the Republic System backed by the US in the past 20 years.

During her meeting, she held talks with key Taliban leaders, including Abdul Kabir, the Taliban’s deputy prime minister and she emphasized on the need for continued efforts to create an inclusive system in Afghanistan.