Afghanistan: US and Taliban meet for their first talks since NATO withdrawal – iNews

The US and the Taliban have held face-to-face talks for the first time since NATO withdrew from Afghanistan in August.

The talks took place in Doha and covered issues ranging from the evacuation of foreign citizens to the economy.

The US reportedly offered coronavirus vaccines to Afghans, while Taliban representatives asked the US to lift a ban on Afghan central reserves, according to a Taliban minister quoted in Al-Jazeera.

The minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, said that the two parties discussed opening a new page between the two countries after a decades-long war.

The Taliban has indicated it may be flexible on the evacuation of foreign citizens, many of whom remain in Afghanistan despite evacuation efforts removing thousands.

Campaigners in the UK warned thatan estimated 400 to 500 British citizens are still stranded in Afghanistanand desperately seeking help to return home.

However, the Taliban said it would not cooperate with the US to fight terrorist group Isis, a sworn enemy of the Taliban.

Spokesperson Suhail Shaheen told The Associated Press insisted the Taliban could tackle [Isis] independently.

On Friday, the terrorist group took responsibility for a suicide bombing which killed 46 minority Shiite Muslims and wounded dozens as they prayed in a mosque in the northern city of Kunduz.

The talks will continue on Saturday and into Sunday, but the US has insisted they are not a precursor to recognition of the Talibans leadership in Afghanistan.

They come after two days of discussions between Pakistani officials and US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman in Islamabad focusing on Afghanistan. There, Pakistani officials urged the US to engage with the Taliban and approve billions of dollars in aid to prevent an economic collapse.

The UK Government held its first talks with the Taliban earlier this week.

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Afghanistan: US and Taliban meet for their first talks since NATO withdrawal - iNews