Calling The Taliban Government Not Inclusive, President Erdogan Gives Conditions For Cooperation

JAKARTA - The approach of the current Taliban and the interim government being formed is not inclusive, but Turkey is willing to cooperate with them if the armed group forms a broader government, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.

Turkey is a NATO member that worked with Qatar to operate Kabul airport for international travel, after the Taliban took power and foreign countries withdrew from Afghanistan.

Ankara welcomed the Taliban's initial message, but said it would evaluate its involvement and recognition of the group based on their actions.

"Looking at the current approach of the Taliban, unfortunately an inclusive and comprehensive leadership has not yet been formed," President Erdogan said after attending the UN General Assembly in New York.

"At the moment, there are only a few signals (about) the possibility of some change, a maybe a more inclusive atmosphere in the leadership. We haven't seen this yet. If such a step can be taken, then we can move on to the point of discussing what we can do together. ," he explained.

President Erdogan's comments came after Turkey's ambassador to Kabul, Cihad Erginay, met with Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi.

Erginay said on Twitter he pledged "Turkey's continued support to the Afghan people and a commitment to building on our historic ties".

Earlier this month, the Taliban appointed hardline veterans to an all-male cabinet. The Taliban has framed the cabinet as an interim government, suggesting change is still possible, but has not said whether there will be elections.

Meanwhile, neighboring Pakistan, a close ally of Turkey, is also among the countries calling for the Taliban to form an inclusive government.

Earlier this week, Prime Minister Imran Khan said in a post on Twitter that he had "started dialogue with the Taliban for an inclusive Afghan government to include Tajiks, Hazaras and Uzbeks.

The Taliban say it wants international recognition and financial aid to rebuild the war-torn country, but the Taliban's new governance structure poses a dilemma for many countries.

Several interim ministers are on the UN blacklist of international “terrorists and financiers of terrorism”.

The Taliban took control of Afghanistan last month after a stunning victory on the battlefield, capturing more than a dozen provincial capitals in less than two weeks. This is the second time the Taliban have ruled Afghanistan.