US envoy meets Taliban diplomat, discuss situation in Afghanistan
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The US Special Representative on Afghanistan discusses with the Taliban's Foreign Minister economic stabilization in the country and concerns over attacks on civilians.
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US envoy meets Taliban diplomat
The US Special Representative on Afghanistan Thomas West met with the Taliban's Foreign Minister Amir Khan Mutaqi on Saturday.
According to West, the two discussed economic stabilization in Afghanistan and concerns over attacks on civilians.
He said that "Dialogue will continue in support of Afghan people and our national interests."
"Girls must be back in school, women free to move & work w/o restrictions for progress to normalized relations," West wrote on Twitter of his meeting in Qatar with Mutaqi.
Earlier this month, Afghanistan's supreme leader ordered women to cover up fully in public, including their faces, ideally with the traditional burqa.
The country is swinging on the verge of economic disaster after various nations froze Afghanistan's assets held abroad and cut off aid.
The UN World Food Program (WFP) announced that almost half of the Afghan population is facing acute hunger, with more than 20,000 people in the Ghor province nearing a food security catastrophe.
After the Taliban seized the nation in August, the government was dissolved leaving behind over $7 billion in central bank assets deposited with the US Federal Reserve Bank in New York. The Taliban took over the central bank, Da Afghanistan Bank, and claimed ownership of funds.
It has been unclear since then who is legally authorized to access the assets, and the US still has not recognized the Taliban's government.
It is noteworthy that US President Joe Biden had signed an executive order releasing the frozen Afghan funds to be shared between humanitarian assistance for Afghanistan and American victims of "terrorism", including 9/11 families.
![In a 2021 interview with Frontline by former US special representative James Jeffrey, he says he had "engaged with [HTS] via backchannels while serving in President Trump’s State Department. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)](https://alpha-en-media.almayadeen.net/media/image/2024/12/21/b4a69f2e-8682-43e4-9d37-49482b304ab3/3.png?v=2&format=webp "In a 2021 interview with Frontline by former US special representative James Jeffrey, he says he had \"engaged with [HTS] via backchannels while serving in President Trump’s State Department. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)")
