Experts call for encouraging the Taliban to act responsibly

ISLAMABAD September 15 (Online): Experts speaking at a webinar on Wednesday called for encouraging the Taliban to act responsibly.

The webinar was organized by the Institute of Regional Studies (IRS) in collaboration with the Romanian Diplomatic Institute (RDI)
The Director General of the Romanian Diplomatic Institute (RDI) Dr. Iulian Fota (Director General RDI) was of the view that with the fall of Kabul it had become clear to the Europeans that not only had the era of distant wars for promotion of democracy and Western values come to an end but questions were also asked about European overdependence on the US for its security. He added that the Europeans were also debating the purported decline of the West but that it was too early to say which perspective was more accurate.

Assistant Professor at Quaid-i-Azam University Dr Salma Malik termed the Afghans as independent-minded people inhabiting difficult geography.
This, she argued, was the reason that they had historically been wary of any external influence in their affairs and had always presented a united front against external threats. She urged the international community to understand the unique dynamics of Afghanistan and incentivize the Taliban to act responsibly.

She specifically urged the international community to attach rewards to human rights-related goalposts for them to make them behave responsibly.

Afghan entrepreneur and political activist Hassina Syed also agreed that the Taliban needed to be given a chance to prove themselves and added that what had been done in Afghanistan could not be undone.

She urged the international community to continue to focus on women’s rights issues in Afghanistan but added that for Afghans security and livelihoods were more important issues. She further stated that since the situation in Afghanistan was not very clear, there was a need to give the Taliban more space and time and to assist the people of Afghanistan with humanitarian assistance.

Senior researcher at the RDI Dr Dragos Mateescusaid that the EU was monitoring the situation in Afghanistan through a complex mechanism called the Migration Preparedness and Crisis Blueprint Network on Afghanistan.
He added that the main concern of the EU was the influx of refugees from Afghanistan who had been arriving in various EU countries through the Iran-Turkey-Italy route alongside thousands of others Afghans who were flying to EU countries with valid travel documents but were likely to stay back as refugees.