DOHA (Al Jazeera) – Delegates from the Taliban and the United States have concluded two-day talks in the Qatari capital, according to a U.S. official.
The weekend talks in Doha, that focused on security and “terrorism” concerns, and evacuations from Afghanistan, were the first face-to-face meeting between the two sides since the Taliban took over Afghanistan on August 15.
“The discussions were candid and professional with the U.S. delegation reiterating that the Taliban will be judged on its actions, not only its words,” Ned Price, spokesman for the US Department of State, said on Sunday.
Al Jazeera correspondent, reporting from Doha, said that the Taliban delegation had described the two-day talks as “positive”.
“They hope it paves the way for recognition of the Afghan government – not only by the United States, but the international community,” she said.
The Afghan delegation, led by the Afghan acting foreign minister, Mullah Amir Khan Muttaqi, also came to Doha seeking financial assistance that comes with any sort of international recognition, she said.
The Afghan delegation was asking the U.S. to end economic sanctions and to “unfreeze” some $10bn worth of assets, she added.
The Taliban announced its all-male Cabinet last month, but it has struggled to govern amid a liquidity crisis after it was cut off from the international financial institutions, such as IMF and World Bank.
The group has said it needs to pay government employees and provide services to Afghans amid a looming economic and humanitarian crisis.
Neither the U.S. nor the Taliban have said if any agreements were reached during the talks.
The Taliban took back power in Afghanistan in August, almost 20 years after they were deposed in a U.S.-led invasion. The U.S. invaded Afghanistan in October 2001 following the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, despite the fact that no Afghan national was involved in the attacks. Hundreds of thousands of Afghans died in the U.S. war of aggression on the country.
American forces occupied the country for about two decades on the pretext of fighting against the Taliban. But as the U.S. forces left Afghanistan, the Taliban stormed into capital Kabul, weakened by continued foreign occupation.