China both worries and hopes as US departs Afghanistan
In the US departure from Afghanistan, China has seen the realization of long-held hopes for a reduction of the influence of a geopolitical rival in what it considers its backyard.
ISLAMABAD (June 6): Taliban authorities in Afghanistan said Tuesday that a car bomb blast had killed at least two people, including the deputy governor of the northeastern Badakhshan border province.
A local official spokesman told VOA by phone that Molvi Nisar Ahmad Ahmadi was
China’s ambitions to have a major hand in Afghanistan’s stability and development under the Taliban, while boosting its own stature, will be on display.
Following the withdrawal of the United States from Afghanistan, China emerged as the foremost country to establish diplomatic relations with the Taliban.
WASHINGTON, Oct. 19 : The United States will not join talks on Afghanistan hosted by Russia this week, the Department of State said on Monday. "We will not participate in the Moscow talks," State Department spokesperson Ned Price told reporters in a press briefing. "The Troika-plus has been an effective, a constructive forum. We look forward to engaging in that forum going forward, but we're not in a position to take part this week." Price said that the United States is unable to join the talks due to logistic difficulties, adding the U.S. side supports the process.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State Antony Blinken later in the day announced that U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad is leaving his post and will be replaced by his deputy Thomas West.
The departure of Khalilzad, who served as special envoy for Afghanistan under presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden, came less than two months after the U.S. withdrawal from the country. Russian special envoy for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov said on Friday that Russia had invited the United States to participate in the upcoming talks on Afghanistan in Moscow, which would focus on post-conflict reconstruction and humanitarian assistance.
Russia has invited Taliban representatives to the meeting slated for Oct. 20. The Moscow-format consultations on Afghanistan were launched in 2017 on the basis of the six-party mechanism for consultations among representatives from Russia, Afghanistan, China, Pakistan, Iran and India.
BEIJING, September 9: China's Foreign Ministry on Wednesday announced USD 31 million aid to Afghanistan, endorsing the new caretaker government "Islamic Emirate" of Taliban.
Hua Chunyin, a spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry, said the decision was announced during the first meeting of the foreign ministers of Afghanistan's neighbouring countries and would be "for emergency use to the Afghan people", reported CNN. China will provide almost USD 31 million worth of food, winter weather supplies, vaccines, and medicine to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi also announced that China will donate 3 million vaccine doses to Afghanistan in the first batch, according to the Chinese state news agency Xinhua. It is not clear when the vaccines are scheduled to be delivered, reported CNN.
Speaking at the Foreign Minister's meeting in Beijing via video link, Wang also said the United States and its allies were more obligated than any other country to provide economic and humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people.
Following the US withdrawal from Afghanistan and subsequent Taliban takeover, Wang said the US should "assume their responsibilities" in the country by helping ensure its development and stability while "respecting the sovereignty and independence of Afghanistan," Xinhua reported.
On Tuesday, the Taliban announced the formation of a hardline interim government for Afghanistan, filling top posts with veterans of the Islamist militant group who oversaw the 20-year fight against the US-led military coalition.
China shares a 50-mile (80 kilometres) border with China's western region of Xinjiang at the end of the narrow Wakhan Corridor and has a substantial investment in the wider region through Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Following a high-profile meeting between Taliban leaders and the Chinese foreign minister in Tianjin in July, Wang called the Taliban "an important military and political force in Afghanistan" and declared that they would play "an important role in the country's peace, reconciliation and reconstruction process", reported CNN.
In return, the Taliban called China a "good friend" and pledged to "never allow any forces to use the Afghan territory to engage in acts detrimental to China," according to a statement from the Chinese Foreign Ministry at the meeting.
Last week, a Taliban spokesperson called for closer relations with Beijing in an interview with Chinese state broadcaster CGTN.
"China is a very important and strong country in our neighbourhood, and we have had very positive and good relations with China in the past," Zabihullah Mujahid said. "We want to make these relations even stronger and want to improve the mutual trust level."(ANI)
DUSHANBE, July 15: Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here on Wednesday that the Chinese side will continue to provide anti-epidemic support including vaccines to Afghanistan until the country beats the outbreak.
Wang made the remarks during his meeting with Afghan Foreign Minister Mohammad Haneef Atmar.
Noting that China and Afghanistan are friendly neighbors linked by mountains and rivers, Wang said that the Chinese side attaches great importance to the China-Afghanistan strategic cooperative partnership, and is willing to work with the country to prepare for high-level contacts between the two countries and send a positive and peaceful signal to the outside world.
Wang added that he hoped the Afghan government will ensure the safety and security of Chinese personnel and institutions in Afghanistan.
Wang said that the hasty exit of U.S. and NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) troops from Afghanistan has led to escalating tensions and expanding war in Afghanistan, and the settlement of the Afghan issue has arrived at a crossroads.
The Chinese side supports the establishment of a broad and inclusive political structure in Afghanistan through dialogue and consultation based on the "Afghan-led, Afghan-owned" principle, he said.
Wang reaffirmed China's support for Afghanistan in becoming an independent, autonomous and neutral country that pursues a moderate Muslim policy.
He said Beijing backs Afghanistan in its fight against all forms of terrorism and in getting along well with all neighboring countries.
Wang also said that the urgent task is to avoid a civil war, restart the intra-Afghan negotiations, and seek a political reconciliation plan, especially to prevent various terrorist forces from growing stronger by taking advantage of the situation in Afghanistan.
Afghanistan should not become a place for terrorists to gather again, he added. Noting that all ethnic groups and factions are members of the big Afghan family, Wang said they should shoulder the responsibility to build peace, and hopes that the Afghan government will strengthen its confidence in peace talks and create necessary conditions for the reconciliation and reconstruction in Afghanistan.
Wang also urged the Taliban to make a clean break with all terrorist forces.
Stressing that China has never interfered in Afghanistan's internal affairs and harbors no geopolitical considerations, Wang said the Chinese side will continue to respect Afghanistan's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity and believes that the Afghan people are capable of governing their own country well.
He added that the Chinese side is ready to facilitate the holding of intra-Afghan talks in China and contribute to the political settlement of the Afghan issue.
For his part, Atmar warmly congratulated the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, saying that China is a good friend and neighbor of Afghanistan, and his country looks forward to a new level of cooperation with China in such areas as politics, economy and security.
The Afghan side fully agrees with China's position on the Afghan issue, and expects stronger cooperation with China within bilateral and multilateral frameworks to promote a political solution to the Afghan issue, he said.
He also said that the Afghan side is ready to strengthen security cooperation with China, and crack down on terrorist groups such as the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, adding that his country will never allow any terrorist organization to do anything harmful to China in Afghanistan.
Atmar expressed his appreciation for China's support for Afghanistan's fight against the COVID-19 epidemic, saying that the Afghan government will do its utmost to ensure the safety and security of Chinese personnel and institutions in Afghanistan.RSS
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