UPDATE - US, Taliban hold 'candid, professional' talks in Qatar

UPDATE - US, Taliban hold 'candid, professional' talks in Qatar

US reiterates 'Taliban will be judged on actions, not only words,' Taliban stress need 'to restore diplomatic relations'

UPDATES WITH TALIBAN STATEMENT; REVISES HEADLINE, DECK

By Servet Gunerigok

WASHINGTON (AA) – A US delegation held “candid and professional” discussions with the Taliban in Qatar this weekend, the State Department said Sunday.

In a statement, spokesman Ned Price said the interagency delegation met with senior Taliban representatives in the capital Doha on Saturday and Sunday, their first meeting since the US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan in August.

“The US delegation focused on security and terrorism concerns and safe passage for US citizens, other foreign nationals and our Afghan partners, as well as on human rights, including the meaningful participation of women and girls in all aspects of Afghan society,” said Price.

The two sides also discussed the US’ provision of humanitarian assistance directly to the Afghan people.

The delegation reiterated that “the Taliban will be judged on its actions, not only its words,” the statement said.

A day earlier, Amir Khan Muttaqi, the acting foreign minister in the interim Taliban government, said the meeting tackled bilateral relations between Kabul and Washington, implementation of the Doha agreement, humanitarian aid and Afghan assets frozen by the US.

“We clearly told them that trying to destabilize the government in Afghanistan is good for no one,” Muttaqi told Afghan state news agency Bakhtar after the talks.

A statement by the Taliban’s interim Foreign Ministry also termed the talks “candid” and “a good opportunity of understanding.”

Political issues were discussed in detail and the Taliban conveyed to the US that “full implementation of the Doha agreement … [is] the best way for resolving problems, and also that humanitarian assistance should not be linked with political issues,” the statement said.

The Taliban welcomed the US pledge to “give humanitarian assistance to Afghans and … provide facilities for other humanitarian organizations to deliver aid.”

The Taliban will “cooperate with charitable groups in delivering humanitarian assistance to those deserving transparently, and will facilitate principled movement of foreign nationals,” read the statement.

The statement also stressed the need for efforts “to restore diplomatic relations to a better state.”

“The meeting, in which talks were candid, was considered a good opportunity of understanding and it was agreed that such meetings will continue to be held in the future if required,” it added.

The Taliban regained control of Kabul on Aug. 15 after the previous Western-backed administration collapsed and its officials fled the war-torn country.

The Taliban previously ruled Afghanistan from 1996 until 2001, when US-led foreign forces invaded the country in search of al-Qaeda and other militant groups.


* S. K. Khan contributed to this report from Islamabad, Pakistan.

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