KABUL (Pajhwok): Afghanistan on Thursday welcomed some parts of the United Nations General Secretary’s special envoy’s statement, saying the Islamic Emirate (IE) was committed to international norms and obligations that were not in contrary to Islamic Sharia and Afghan cultural values.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) in a statement said: “We welcome some parts of the statement by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), which acknowledged positive changes in Afghanistan, such as effective ban on drugs, macroeconomic stability, prevention from corruption, access of girls to education in some areas, regular revenue collection, payment of salaries, significant improvement in security and concerted efforts against Daesh.”
The press release also said Roza Otunbayeva in her statement attempted to reflect the complicated realities of Afghanistan in contrast to the recent report of the Sanctions Committee monitoring team and the Special Rapporteur on Human Rights, which was full of errors and designed to reflect political agendas of some actors.
The source said: “We take note of the complexities of Afghanistan pointed out in the statement and reiterate that the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is committed to all those global obligations and international norms that are not contrary to Islamic sharia, the cultural values of Afghanistan and our national interests. We therefore urge all countries to remain committed to the unalterable principle of non-interference and to cease all attempts to interfere in our internal affairs, including the structure and form of our governance and laws.”
The MoFA stressed that Afghanistan was committed to its international responsibilities about security of Afghanistan, securing borders of the country, preventing threats, access to justice, struggle against the trafficking and counter narcotics.
“Now, the international community must also fulfill its responsibilities, such as respecting the basic principle of non-interference, preventing threats to our national security from other parties, fighting against all types of smuggling and narcotics, and committing to non-interference in our internal affairs.”
The United Nations envoy to the country and head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has said it will be “nearly impossible” for the international community to recognise the Taliban government as long as restrictions on women and girls remain in place in Afghanistan.
Roza Otunbayeva told the UN Security Council on Wednesday that the new rulers had asked to be recognised by the UN and its member nations, “but at the same time, they act against the key values expressed in the United Nations Charter”.
She said the economy “remains stable” with inflation down and exchange rates steady – due in part to a reduction in high level corruption.
This macroeconomic stability, however, coexists with severe household poverty” with 58 per cent struggling to satisfy basic needs, according to the World Bank.
On other areas of concern, the UNAMA head said despite concerted counter-terrorism efforts, the terrorist group ISIL-KP continued to target both Taliban officials and civilians.
Although the Islamic Emirate takeover has led to a sharp fall in civilian casualties, she said the UN Mine Action Service was reporting there continue to be around 100 casualties per month from unexploded ordinance.
In conclusion, she told the Council that UNAMA and the UN system in Afghanistan would continue to engage with the Taliban, building on “established reliable working channels”.
aw/ma
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