Amir Khan Muttaqi, the foreign minister for the Taliban government, was granted permission on Monday to fly from Afghanistan to Pakistan the next week in order to meet with the foreign ministers of Pakistan and China, according to diplomats.
Under Security Council sanctions, Muttaqi has long been subject to a travel ban, asset freeze, and arms embargo.
In a statement to the Security Council’s 15-member committee on Taliban sanctions, Pakistan’s U.N. mission requested an exception for Muttaqi to travel between May 6 and 9, “for a meeting with the foreign ministers of Pakistan and China.”
What the ministers would talk about was not specified. It stated that Pakistan would pay for all expenses related to Muttaqi’s journey.
As part of the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) infrastructure project, which is a component of the Belt and Road Initiative, Chinese and Pakistani officials have both previously stated that they would welcome a Taliban-led Afghanistan.
Afghanistan has undiscovered natural resources worth billions of dollars and is strategically located on a trade and transit route connecting South and Central Asia. After 20 years of conflict, the U.S.-led military departed in August 2021, allowing the Taliban to take control.
A meeting of the foreign ministers of Afghanistan’s neighbours took place in Uzbekistan last month, and Muttaqi was given permission by the Security Council committee to attend. The meeting was to examine critical issues relating to peace, security, and stability.
A two-day conference with special envoys on Afghanistan from various nations was started by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday in Doha. The meeting’s goal is “to achieve a common understanding within the international community on how to engage with the Taliban,” according to U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric.
Dujarric stated that important topics would be covered at the closed-door meeting, including terrorism prevention, inclusive governance, women’s and girls’ rights, and drug trafficking.
Participants include Britain, the United States, Uzbekistan, the European Union, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Norway, Pakistan, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Qatar.
