Meeting In Kabul, Chinese Ambassador And Taliban Leaders Discuss Security To Humanitarian Aid

Taliban leaders meet with China's ambassador to Afghanistan. (Twitter/@IeaOffice)

JAKARTA - China has again shown its intimacy with the Taliban. Yesterday, Deputy Head of the Political Office of the Taliban in Qatar Abdul Salam Hanafi, met with the Chinese Ambassador to Afghanistan Wang Yu in Kabul.

"Today, a delegation led by Maulvi Abdul Salam Hanafi, Deputy Head of the Political Bureau of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, met with the Ambassador of neighboring China and his accompanying delegation in Kabul", Taliban spokesman Mohammad Naeem posted on Twitter Tuesday, August 24.

Quoting Mint on Wednesday, August 25, the two sides discussed the security of Chinese embassies and diplomats, the current situation in Afghanistan, bilateral relations, and China's humanitarian assistance.

Along with Russia, China is known to keep its embassy in Kabul, after the Taliban quickly seized control of the Afghan capital on August 15, prompting foreign nationals and their Afghan allies to evacuate immediately.

China is one of the countries that has had a lot of communication with the Taliban in recent times. Citing Reuters on July 28, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with a nine-man Taliban delegation led by Mullah Baradar Akhund in Tianjin.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the Taliban were expected to play an important role in the process of peaceful reconciliation and reconstruction in Afghanistan. On the occasion, Wang Yi also hoped that the Taliban would take action against the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, because it is a direct threat to China's national security, referring to a group that China says is active in the Xinjiang region in China's far west.

Last week, China's Foreign Minister on behalf of the government said the international community should guide and support Afghanistan during the transition of government, instead of putting more pressure on it.

The situation in Afghanistan, where the Taliban have reclaimed power 20 years after being forced out by the US-led invasion, remains unstable and uncertain, Wang was quoted as saying by China's Foreign Ministry.

"The international community should encourage and guide it in a positive direction rather than put more pressure on it that will be conducive to stabilizing the situation", he said in a telephone conversation with British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab last week.

In a telephone conversation with the British Foreign Minister, Wang also said the international community should not use Afghanistan as a geopolitical battleground but should respect its independence and the will of its people.