Face-to-face talks: Taliban warns US not to ‘destabilize’ regime

The Taliban warned the US not to “destabilize” the regime during their first face-to-face talks since the US withdrawal, AFP reported.

As mourners in northern Afghanistan buried their dead from an attack on a mosque that killed 62, a Taliban delegation told US officials in Doha that any weakening of their government could cause “problems for the people.”

Scores more worshippers were wounded in Friday’s blast in Kunduz, which was claimed by IS — who appear to be attempting to further shake Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover.

“We clearly told them that trying to destabilize the government in Afghanistan is good for no one,” Muttaqi told the Afghan state news agency Bakhtar after the talks in the Qatari capital.

“Good relations with Afghanistan are good for everyone. Nothing should be done to weaken the existing government in Afghanistan which can lead to problems for the people,” he said, in a recorded statement translated by AFP.

The Taliban are seeking international recognition, as well as assistance to avoid a humanitarian disaster and ease Afghanistan’s economic crisis.

A State Department official said the US delegation would press the Taliban to ensure terrorists do not create a base for attacks in the country.

It would also pressure Afghanistan’s new rulers to form an inclusive government and to respect the rights of women and girls, the official said, stressing the meeting did not indicate Washington recognized Taliban rule.

“We remain clear that any legitimacy must be earned through the Taliban’s own actions,” the official said.

As the two-day talks began, Kunduz counted the cost of the bloodiest assault since US forces left the country in August.

A gravedigger in the cemetery overlooking the city told AFP they had handled 62 bodies, and local reports suggested the final toll could be up to 100.