Call The United States A Big Country, Taliban Official: Sanctions Against Afghanistan Has No Benefits

JAKARTA - Afghanistan's foreign minister appointed by the Taliban called the United States of America a "big nation", calling on the superpower and other countries to cooperate with Kabul, with a commitment to providing jobs and education for women and girls.

"You are a great and great nation, and you must have enough patience and a big heart to dare to make policies in Afghanistan based on international rules and degradation, to end differences and shorten the distance between us and choose good relations with Afghanistan," Amir said. Khan Muttaqi in an interview with The Associated Press, citing Daily Sabah Dec. 14.

He noted the Taliban government wants good relations with all countries and has no problem with the US. At the same time, he urged Washington and other countries to release more than $10 billion in funds frozen when the Taliban took power on August 15.

"Sanctions against Afghanistan will not, there will be no benefit," said Muttaqi, who spoke in Pashto during an interview at the Foreign Ministry building in the heart of the capital Kabul.

"Making Afghanistan unstable or having a weak government is not in anyone's interest," said Muttaqi.

Muttaqi also acknowledged global outrage at the restrictions the Taliban imposed on the education of girls and women in the workforce. In many parts of Afghanistan, female students between grades 7 and 12 have not been allowed to go to school since the Taliban took over, and many female civil servants have been ordered to stay at home.

Taliban officials say they need time to make gender-segregated arrangements in schools and workplaces.

Muttaqi said under the new Taliban government, girls will attend grade 12 in 10 of the country's 34 provinces, private schools and universities operate without a hitch, and 100% of women who previously worked in the health sector are back in school. profession.

"This shows that we are principally committed to women's participation," she said.

Separately, in a White House briefing on Monday, press secretary Jen Psaki said "reserve funds remain inaccessible to the Taliban." He did not see the initial change, saying US money was now linked to claims by victims of the 9/11 attacks on the US, which were perpetrated by Al-Qaeda while being kept in Afghanistan by the Taliban.

"This legal process cannot be ignored and has led to the temporary suspension of any movement of funds until at least the end of the year and very possibly longer," said Psaki.

Even if money could be spent, Washington wants to make sure it doesn't benefit the Taliban, he said. The United Nations and other organizations say the money will be channeled through charities and not from the Taliban.

Psaki also noted that the Taliban remained a designated terrorist group globally. Washington, however, negotiated for more than two years with the insurgent movement and signed a deal in February 2020 with the Taliban for the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan.