Noting the gravity of the state of affairs in Afghanistan, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation had tasked China, Russia, Pakistan and Iran to exert positive influence on Kabul to help stabilize the situation. Special envoys of China, Russia and Pakistan subsequently visited Kabul where they held talks with the top government leadership beside meeting former Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Afghan leader Abdullah Abdullah. The envoys reportedly underlined the need on the part of Taliban to form an inclusive government, implement human rights and prevent terrorists from establishing sanctuaries, control the drug trafficking and avert the looming humanitarian crisis. At the same time the envoys stressed the importance of global engagement with the Taliban to avert any catastrophe.
The crisis already looms over the horizon. UN officials have warned that the Afghan state could collapse as the poverty rate climbs, hunger soars, and the economy tanks. The country is critically dependent on foreign aid which was up to 43 percent of its GDP in recent years. The pause in aid by the USA, its Nato allies and international organizations is reflecting itself in non-payment of dues to government employees and closure of aid-dependent private enterprises. A WHO team visiting Kabul recently noted that nine out of 37 covid-19 hospitals have already closed and all aspects of the covid-19 response have dropped including surveillance, testing, and vaccination. The team warned that the country faces an imminent humanitarian catastrophe.
The world is unwilling to recognize the Taliban government unless it establishes an inclusive administration, enforces human rights and puts an end to terrorist sanctuaries. The Taliban government says it is making moves in the direction. There is a perception however that the moves are slow and insufficient. A few non-Pakhtuns belatedly inducted in the cabinet are from the Taliban’s own camp, and their number is insignificant while there is no woman in the Cabinet yet. What is more, the girls secondary schools still remain closed .
While the USA and Nato countries are using aid as leverage, there is sense in Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s observation that Afghanistan’s foreign exchange reserves are national assets that should be returned to the country’s people instead of being used as a bargaining chip.
