Afghanistan Peace CampaignShe said that with the Security Council’s support, the UN can continue building and strengthening engagement with the Islamic Emirate.
The United Nations Security Council held a session late last night to discuss Afghanistan.
In the meeting, the acting head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) called on member states to help address the root causes of Afghanistan’s humanitarian, economic, and human rights crises.
She said that with the Security Council’s support, the UN can continue building and strengthening engagement with the Islamic Emirate.
Georgette Gagnon, acting head of UNAMA, stated: “With the Council’s support, we can continue to build bridges of engagement and work towards our common vision of an Afghanistan at peace, reintegrated into the global community and where the human rights of all Afghans are realized and respected.”
Fu Cong, China’s permanent representative to the United Nations, said: “Maintaining engagement between the international community and Afghanistan’s current government is more essential than ever, and dialogue with the Islamic Emirate must be strengthened to help improve the situation.”
Representatives from India and Russia said that punitive policies against the Islamic Emirate over the past four and a half years have yielded no tangible benefits for the Afghan people and have only prolonged the current state of affairs.
India’s representative, Parvathaneni Harish, emphasized: “For years, India has been a strong advocate of peace and stability in Afghanistan. Coordinated regional and international cooperation on key issues concerning Afghanistan is paramount, as is strongly engaging relevant parties for promoting peace, stability and development in the country.”
Russia’s envoy, Vassily Nebenzia, said: “Russia has consistently stressed the need to craft a viable comprehensive approach on Afghanistan. This approach needs to be rooted in an objective analysis and a balanced assessment of the situation in the country. This is an imperative.”
Meanwhile, countries like the United States and the United Kingdom used the session to criticize restrictions imposed on women in Afghanistan.
Elise Stefanik, the U.S. representative, said: “People of Afghanistan continue to endure significant hardships including human rights abuses, poverty, unemployment, limited access to basic services, and unconscionable restrictions on women’s rights. The Taliban are responsible for these hardships and suffering because of the policy.”
The UK’s representative said: “Over the four years of the Taliban’s rule, repression has intensified. Over a hundred edicts have systematically eroded the rights of Afghan women and girls. Girls cannot attend school after the age of 12, and for more than three months, the Taliban has banned women from working at UN offices.”
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan welcomed the positive engagement approach expressed by some countries during the session. Hamdullah Fitrat, deputy spokesperson for the Islamic Emirate, also criticized the stance of certain countries, emphasizing that negative positions will yield no results.
Fitrat said: “We appreciate that some countries have stressed positive engagement with Afghanistan this is a constructive step and the only path toward building trust. Afghanistan wants positive engagement with all countries. Those that continue to hold unrealistic positions should adopt more pragmatic approaches. Negative posturing in the past has brought no results.”
Representatives from China, Russia, and UNAMA also expressed concern over recent tensions between Kabul and Islamabad, urging the normalization of relations between the two countries.