Taliban Announce New Afghan Government, President Erdoan: We Don't Know How Long This Interim Cabinet Will Be

Presiden Turki Recep Tayyip Erdogan. (Wikimedia Commons/Kremlin.ru/The Presidential Press and Information Office)

JAKARTA - President Recep Tayyip Erdoan chose to act wisely, cautiously while observing developments in Afghanistan, along with the announcement of a new government by the Taliban last Tuesday.

The Taliban has officially announced a new structure for Afghanistan's government. Mullah Hassan Akhund, who is a co-founder of the group Mullah Omar, was appointed head of the government with Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar who is the head of the Taliban's political office as his deputy.

President Erdoan said that while the Taliban had just announced an interim cabinet, Turkey was carefully monitoring the development of the situation.

"We don't know how long this interim cabinet will last. What we have to do is follow this process carefully," President Erdogan said at a press conference citing Anadolu September 7.

Regarding the planned operation of the Kabul airport, Afghanistan in the future, President Erdoan said Turkey had taken a positive approach from the start. However, such developments are not yet concrete.

Last August, President Erdogan said he had yet to make a decision on the Taliban's request for support to manage Kabul's airport, after foreign troops left Afghanistan and uncertainty in the country.

Citing Reuters on Aug. 27, officials said the Taliban had asked Turkey for technical assistance to run the airport, but continued to demand that Ankara's military be withdrawn by the Aug. 31 deadline for foreign troop withdrawals.

President Erdogan said calm had to be restored in Kabul before making a decision on the airport. He said there was a risk of being 'sucked in' into something that would be difficult to explain given the uncertainty surrounding the possible mission.

"The Taliban have made a request regarding the operation of Kabul airport. They said, We will ensure the security and you can operate it. However, we have not made a decision, because there is always the possibility of death and things like that there," Erdogan told a news conference. in Istanbul before leaving for a visit to Bosnia.

Earlier, the Taliban warned Turkey against possible plans to keep some troops in Afghanistan, to run and guard Kabul airport, following the withdrawal of US-led foreign coalition forces.

The Taliban firmly called the Turkish plan a despicable act, as well as warned of the consequences that would result from it. Turkey's offer comes after Turkey held talks with the United States.

"The Emirate of Afghanistan condemns this despicable decision. If Turkish officials fail to reconsider their decision and continue the occupation of our country, we will take a stand against them," the Taliban said in a statement.