Aug. 20 2021 In just a few days, the situation in Afghanistan has changed dramatically.
Local time on the 19th, the Afghan Taliban announced the establishment of the “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.” Senior Taliban officials have also met with Afghan leaders or will form a new government.
The U.S. approach to Afghan civilians has been widely criticized for partially continuing its “America First” policy.
The international community will continue to be concerned about the impact of the afghan transformation.
Taliban announce ‘Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’
On the occasion of the 102nd anniversary of Afghanistan’s independence from British rule, the Taliban announced the establishment of the “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan” and a new “flag” will fly in Afghanistan, Afghan Taliban spokesman Mujahid said Thursday.
It was only a few days ago that the Taliban entered and took control of the Afghan capital, Kabul.
“We’ve changed a lot compared to 20 years ago.” Mujahid has made a commitment.
He said the Taliban want to “form an inclusive government” in Afghanistan and maintain good relations with the international community to achieve national prosperity.
A senior Taliban official also revealed that Afghanistan will not become a democratic state in the future, “the country will be governed by Sharia law.” ”
Meeting with Afghan leaders, the Taliban to form a new government?
In addition, on the 19th, The Chairman of the Afghan High Commission for National Reconciliation, Abdullah Abdullah, posted a photo on the social networking site showing the Taliban’s high-level delegation meeting with Abdullah and former Afghan President Hamid Karzai to discuss the security, unity and future of Afghanistan.
Singapore’s Yonhap newspaper said the Taliban were in discussions to form a new government.
On the other side, the departure of Afghanistan’s resigned President Ghani on the 18th for the first time “appeared.” He said he supported negotiations between former Afghan government officials and the Taliban.
Mr Ghani also dismissed claims that he was taking large sums of money with him, saying he was in the UAE and would “try to return to Afghanistan in the near future”.
Tens of thousands of people are still waiting to be evacuated from Kabul airport after gunfire and stampedes
In recent days, the Kabul airport, under U.S. military control, has been in chaos. As of the 18th, tens of thousands of Afghans, still waiting to be evacuated from Kabul airport.
During this period, U.S. troops and Taliban members fired several times to maintain order. But the heart-wrenching scene keeps happening.
A photo that went viral on social media showed a baby lying in a blue plastic box, crying. She was only seven months old, but was tragically separated from her parents in the chaos.
Even more shocking, since the 16th, at least 40 people have been killed and injured in shootings, stampedes and other incidents inside and outside the airport.
A video also shows someone trapped outside a U.S. C-17 transport plane, caught in the door of a landing gear compartment, and tragically killed during the flight. Sources said the dead man was most likely a young Afghan men’s soccer player.
Those who want to leave have no plane to take, a Dutch evacuation flight a few days ago, but “a white run.” It is alleged that the flight left Kabul without any Dutch nationals when it was blocked by the United States military.
The Biden administration continues “America First” and promises to Afghan civilians are hard to deliver?
U.S. President Joe Biden on the 18th in an interview, again defended the U.S. withdrawal, saying that “chaos is inevitable.”
However, U.S. media pointed out that what has happened in the past few days shows that Biden is still partially continuing the old path of former President Donald Trump’s “America First” policy.
The Biden administration could have planned the withdrawal of U.S. troops and their allies, or accelerated visa processing for thousands of Afghans, but failed to do so.
Biden also said there were many difficulties in evacuating Afghan citizens who had “helped” the United States. U.S. Defense Secretary Austen also further expressed his stance, saying the U.S. is currently unable to extend the evacuation to Afghan citizens and has no access to people outside Kabul airport.
When Biden claims to be “doing his job of protecting Americans,” has he kept his promise to Afghan civilians who trust the United States?
International Focus, Secretary-General of the United Nations: Ready for Direct Dialogue
At the same time, the international community continues to follow the changing situation in Afghanistan.
On August 19th, local time, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was ready to talk directly with Taliban leaders, but needed to be clear about who to talk to and why.
He also said the United Nations would remain in Afghanistan and work for the security, stability and rights of all.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a regular press conference on the 19th that China encourages and hopes atta will put its positive statement into practice.
“Nothing in the world is static, not just to see how it used to be, but to see what it is now.” Hua Chunying said.
Turkey welcomed the Taliban’s “restraint” statement. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, “Whoever is in power, good times or bad times, we are committed to helping our brothers in Afghanistan.” ”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said the Taliban’s recent words and deeds in Afghanistan have raised expectations that the Afghan issue can be mediated through negotiations.
However, there are still many challenges. Russia’s satellite network quoted experts as saying that while the Taliban have made significant military progress, they still face questions about how to form a government and what kind of government it will form.
Meanwhile, EU officials are worried about a possible new wave of refugees, calling on EU member states to be prepared to take in Afghan refugees.
