OSLO — Norway said it will put "tangible
demands" on the
Taliban during talks in
Oslo on Tuesday, the last day of
the hardline Islamists' controversial first visit to Europe since returning to
power in Afghanistan.
اضافة اعلان
A Taliban delegation led by Foreign Minister
Amir Khan Muttaqi has been in Norway since Saturday for talks focused on humanitarian aid
to Afghanistan.
The country's humanitarian situation has rapidly
deteriorated since the Taliban returned to power in August, when international
aid came to a sudden halt and worsened the plight of millions of people
suffering from hunger after several severe droughts.
The fundamentalists met with members of Afghan civil society
on Sunday, followed by Western diplomats on Monday.
They were to conclude their visit Tuesday with meetings with
a Norwegian political official and NGOs.
"This is not the beginning of an ... open-ended
process", said state secretary Henrik Thune, who was to meet the
delegation on Tuesday morning.
"We are going to place tangible demands that we can
follow up on and see if they have been met", he told Norwegian news agency
NTB.
According to NTB, the demands will include the possibility
of providing humanitarian aid directly to the Afghan people, as well as respect
of human rights — in particular those of women and minorities, such as access
to education and health services, the right to work, and freedom of movement.
Missing women activists
Norway is also expected to raise the plight of two women
activists who went missing in Kabul last week after taking part in a
demonstration. The Taliban have denied responsibility.
The Taliban were toppled in 2001 but stormed back to power
in August as US-led forces began their withdrawal.
The fundamentalists view the talks — being held behind
closed-doors in a hotel near Oslo — as a step toward international recognition
and the unblocking of financial aid.
"Norway providing us this opportunity is an achievement
in itself because we shared the stage with the world," Foreign Minister
Muttaqi said Monday on the sidelines of talks with representatives of the US,
France, Germany, Britain, Italy, the EU, and Norway.
While Norway has insisted the talks do "not represent a
legitimization or recognition of the Taliban", its decision to host a
delegation has been hotly criticized by some experts and members of the
Afghan diaspora.
No country has yet to recognize the fundamentalist regime.
Some 55 percent of the Afghan population is suffering from
hunger, according to the UN. But the international community is waiting to see
how the Taliban intend to govern before unblocking any aid.
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