KABUL (Pajhwok): The United States says it can work with a Taliban government that honours its commitments and obligations.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in an interview on Wednesday: “My hope and, beyond hope, expectation is that the new government of Afghanistan will uphold those basic (human) rights.”
He told TOLOnews: “And if it does that, then that’s a government that we can work with. If it doesn’t, we won’t.”
Asked if the US would recognise the Taliban government, the secretary replied it would depend entirely on Taliban’s actions, not words.
About ex-president Ashraf Ghani’s escape from the country, the secretary of state said he was on the phone with him the night before he fled Afghanistan.
“He told me… he was prepared to fight to the death. In less than 24 hours, he’d left Afghanistan. I certainly didn’t know about it, and we certainly did nothing to facilitate it.”
Also on Wednesday, Blinken told reporters in Germany the US and its allies would judge the interim government by its actions.
“The international community has made clear its expectation that the Afghan people deserve an inclusive government,” he added.
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