The Foreign Minister in Afghanistan’s new Taliban-run Cabinet on Tuesday said the Government remains committed to its promises not to allow militants to use its territory to attack others.
The first Press conference by Amir Khan Muttaqi since the Taliban formed an interim Government a week ago comes as governments around the world — and many Afghans at home — are searching for indications on how it will rule Afghanistan after sweeping out the US-backed Government and taking over Kabul a month ago.
The US and its allies have pushed the Taliban not to repeat its harsh rule of the 1990s, when it monopolised power and imposed its harsh interpretation of Islamic law, including severe restrictions on women and minorities.
Mottaqi gave little sign whether the Taliban will bend to the international pressure. He would not give say how long the interim Government would be in place or whether it would eventually be opened up to other factions, minorities or women.
He repeatedly insisted other countries must not interfere in Afghanistan’s internal issues, including in response to a question on whether elections would eventually be held.
Mottaqi, a longtime Taliban negotiator, did make the first confirmation by a member of the new Government of its commitment to the Taliban deal last year with the United States that opened the way for the American withdrawal from Afghanistan.
