Afghanistan could become ‘pariah state’ if peace not made: Blinken

KABUL (Pajhwok): US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday renewed Washington commitment to remain engage in Afghanistan even after withdrawal of military personnel.

Talking to media in New Delhi, he said: “Even as we withdraw our forces from Afghanistan, we remain engaged in Afghanistan. We have not only a strong embassy there but also have important programmes that support the country economically through development and security assistance.”

He added taking over the country by force and abusing the rights of the people is not the path to achieve those objectives. There is only one path and that is at the negotiation table to resolve the conflict peacefully.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned that Afghanistan would become a “pariah state” if a peace deal is not reached between the government and the Taliban.

“An Afghanistan that does not respect the rights of its people, an Afghanistan that commits atrocities against its own people would become a pariah state,” Blinken told reporters.

The Taliban is making advances in district centres, there are reports of them committing atrocities in Afghanistan. It’s deeply troubling. It certainly doesn’t speak well about their intention for the country. We remain engaged in Afghanistan.

Blinken said, “We are very much engaged in the diplomacy of working to bring parties together at the table for the resolution of the conflict in Afghanistan.

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