China-Taliban ties warming ahead of US withdrawal

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BEIJING – China’s overseas curate met Wednesday with a delegation of high-level Taliban officials arsenic ties betwixt them lukewarm up of the U.S. pullout from Afghanistan.

A photograph posted connected the ministry’s website showed Wang Yi posing with elder Taliban person Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and his delegation successful the metropolis of Tianjin, past sitting down to talks. The highly conspicuous amusement of friendliness had the quality of a diplomatic ngo astatine a clip erstwhile the Taliban are craving legitimacy.

Wang said China respects Afghan sovereign independency and territorial integrity and ever adheres to non-interference successful Afghanistan’s interior affairs.

He said the hasty withdrawal of the U.S. and NATO “reveals the nonaccomplishment of America’s policies and offers the Afghan radical an important accidental to stabilize and make their ain country.”

While nary docket was announced for the meeting, China has an involvement successful pushing the Taliban to present connected bid talks oregon astatine slightest trim the level of unit arsenic they gobble up territory from Afghan authorities forces.

China and Afghanistan stock a constrictive borderline precocious successful the distant Wakhan Valley, and China has agelong been acrophobic astir a imaginable spillover of Islamic militancy into its formerly volatile Xinjiang region. China has besides signed deals for oil, state and copper mining successful Afghanistan, though those person agelong been dormant.

“The Taliban are a pivotal subject and governmental unit successful Afghanistan and are expected to play an important relation successful the successful process of peace, reconciliation and reconstruction," Wang said.

China, Wang said, hopes the Taliban volition enactment the nation's and the people's interests archetypal and absorption connected bid talks, acceptable bid goals, found a “positive image" and enactment for unity among each factions and taste groups.

Wang besides said China hopes the Taliban volition “deal resolutely" with the East Turkistan Islamic Movement, a radical China claims is starring a propulsion for independency successful Xinjiang, but which galore experts uncertainty adjacent exists successful immoderate operational form.

The heads of the Taliban Religious Council and the Propaganda Committee were besides connected the trip.

The U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan by Aug. 31 is seen arsenic a boon to China, Washington's main strategical competitor, which has agelong resented the beingness of U.S. troops successful what it considers its ain backyard.

If the Taliban bash topple the U.S.-backed cardinal government, China could summation a strategical corridor allowing it and long-time state Pakistan to bring further unit against communal rival India.

Baradar's sojourn comes soon aft Pakistan’s overseas curate and quality main made their trips to China.

Pakistan is seen arsenic cardinal to bid successful Afghanistan. The Taliban enactment is headquartered successful Pakistan and Islamabad has utilized its leverage, which it says is present waning, to property the Taliban to speech peace.

While the Tianjin gathering could beryllium seen arsenic a snub astatine the U.S., Washington has been gathering with China and Russia to nutrient statements calling connected the Taliban to participate into a bid deal.

Zalmay Khalilzad, Washington’s constituent idiosyncratic successful talks aimed astatine ending decades of warfare successful Afghanistan, besides made a little sojourn to Pakistan earlier this period arsenic relations betwixt Islamabad and Kabul reached a caller low.

That has fed perceptions that the U.S. is engaged successful stepped-up efforts to get a bid woody up of the Aug. 31 deadline that besides includes China.

After U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman met Wang successful Tianjin connected Monday, she and the State Department included Afghanistan connected the database of “areas of planetary interest" that the U.S. and China could cooperate on.

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