US is worried after regional country’s attention toward Taliban

It has been reported recently that the US has been looking for the possibility to reopen its consulate in Afghanistan under the control of the Taliban. “With the Taliban, we advocate for consular access, transparency and accountability for Americans; we also support the work of the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs to obtain the release of Americans unjustly detained,” reads the Integrated Country Strategy Afghanistan.

But at the same time a State Department spokesman rejected the news and said that there is no plan for the US in near-term to return any diplomatic functions to Kabul, stating that Washington’s position on Afghanistan has not changed.

However, the report had stated that Washington is trying to proceed cautiously in this direction, without intending to officially recognize the Taliban group.

Whatever the reason could be, one thing is for sure that the US is somehow interested in opening its consulate in Kabul as other countries are actively operating there.

To further develop the issue, it is important to take a glance and pay more attention to some important points.

US to reopen consular services in Afghanistan

1. Voice of America has claimed that a new strategic document has been drawn up in the US State Department, which talks about the possibility of reopening the consulate in Afghanistan under the administration of the Taliban. So, the basis of this media’s claim is not the statement of a person, but the document of the State Department.

The report says that the US understands the need for American citizens to have access to consular services in Afghanistan. It’s also reported that for the release of American hostages from Taliban prisons, it is important to establish communication with the Taliban.

In the strategic document, it is stated that the US does not recognize the Taliban, but it needs to establish a relationship with them in order to advance its goals.

US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad and Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar sign an agreement ending the US’s 18-year war in Afghanistan, Doha, Feb. 29, 2020.

The document also mentions and covers various areas such as fighting terrorism, economic aid, local partnership, providing consular services for Americans and helping Afghans at risk, etc.

As claimed by Voice of America, the above items are included in the strategic document of the US State Department. If this document is not available, it seems difficult for the media to provide information with these details.

US ignoring Taliban killing of former Afghan soldiers

2. A few days ago, the Foreign Relations Committee of the United States House of Representatives held a meeting in connection with the condemnation of the killing of the soldiers of the former Afghan government by the Taliban.

The participants of that meeting, each in turn, stated that the former soldiers are subject to systematic killing by the Taliban. Also, some members of the House of Representatives openly criticized the so-called appeasement of Joe Biden’s administration with the Taliban.

A day after that meeting, Matthew Miller, spokesperson for the United States Department of State, who was present at the press conference, in response to a question about the statements of the members of the Foreign Relations Committee of the House of Representatives regarding the killing of former soldiers by the Taliban, expressed ignorance and said he is “not willing to comment on this matter.”

However, later on that day some media outlets reported, citing the US State Department that Washington is worried about the killing of former soldiers by the Taliban, but does not have strong evidence in this regard.

Afghanistan is becoming safe havens for terrorist groups

3. Recently, the United Nations Security Council in its latest report claimed that al-Qaeda, ISIS, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other terrorist groups are actively present in Afghanistan under the rule of the Taliban.

It has been stated that al-Qaeda has nearly eight training bases in several provinces of the country and claimed that the Taliban have maintained their relationship with al-Qaeda, but they are trying not to make it public. ISIS is also mentioned as a strong threat to the security of Afghanistan and the region, whose first target is the Shiites Muslims, then the Taliban and civilians.

Following that, the UN experts published a 23-page report on the presence and activities of al-Qaeda and ISIS groups in Afghanistan. In this report, it is stated that ISIS has the ability to operate in the region and beyond.

The US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) also claimed that the al-Qaeda threat in Afghanistan is re-emerging.

In its quarterly report to the Congress, SIGAR stated that the current leader of al-Qaeda is most likely in Afghanistan. It has also been said that al-Qaeda plans to attack the embassies of European countries, US and Israel in some countries following war between Hamas and Israel.

These three sources that have published reports on the presence and activities of terrorist groups in Afghanistan, have no connection with the Taliban and are apparently neutral.

It was expected that the spokespersons of the White House would express their opinion on this matter and support the contents of the reports, but they did not. The silence of the White House strengthens the suspicion in the minds of observers that it may not agree with the report of the above institutions.

US remained largest donor to Afghanistan

4. SIGAR also announced that the US remained the largest donor to Afghanistan and made available $11.21 billion in assistance to Afghanistan since the withdrawal of its troops from Afghanistan in August 2021. The flow of the aid explains nothing but Washington’s satisfaction with the current rule by the Taliban.

In this regard, there are two points: First, there is a possibility of the Taliban misusing the US aid, and international organizations have repeatedly expressed concern about this. For instance, the Foreign Relations Committee of the US House of Representatives claimed several times in its previous meetings that the Taliban despise the financial aid sent by Washington.

Second; many believe that if the Taliban do not benefit directly they will benefit indirectly.

This means that with the existence of these aids, part of the needs of the people will be solved and the Taliban will write it as an achievement. However, still, a large part of the society would be unable to benefit from such assistance.

US afraid of strong ties between Taliban and regional countries

5. Recently, the Chinese President accepted the credentials of the Taliban ambassador in a ceremony held on the occasion of the acceptance of credentials of ambassadors of more than forty countries. However, the acceptance of credentials personally by the Chinese leader earned reactions and many considered it as recognition of the Taliban government by the government of China.

Even the United States reacted and said that the Chinese government should make it clear whether this action means the recognition of the Taliban or not.

However, a later Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman stated that the recognition of the Taliban regime is conditional on the establishment of an inclusive government and a decisive fight against terrorism.

Not long after that, Uzbekistan also accepted the representative of the Taliban as an ambassador in the Afghan embassy in Tashkent. A move that can be affected and motivated by Beijing’s actions.

The excessive appreciation of Iran to the Taliban, the attempt to establish a regional contact group, the recent Taliban’s hosting of a regional meeting in Kabul, and etc., has generated concern for the United States that the Taliban might become more close with the regional countries.