The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan welcomes parts of UNSC resolution 2681 that reaffirms the Security Council’s strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity, and national unity of Afghanistan; support for the Afghanistan people; a peaceful, stable, prosperous Afghanistan; and the principle of Afghan-led and Afghan-owned right to self-determination.
The resolution’s acknowledgement that Afghanistan faces multifaceted challenges is welcomed. Afghanistan has suffered from decades-long conflict, often imposed by foreign powers. The path to a post-conflict recovery requires the unconditional removal of UN, multilateral, and unilateral sanctions and restrictions on the country, in addition to the provision of humanitarian and development assistance to the country.
Afghanistan’s ongoing humanitarian crisis is man-made, driven by economic restrictions on the country. While humanitarian assistance is appreciated, the reality is that this ongoing crisis can only be resolved by the removal of restrictions on the country and helping Afghanistan to address core climate change, economic, infrastructural, and development needs of its people.
While taking take note of the condemnation of the decision to restrict Afghan women from working with the UN in Afghanistan, we stress that, in line with international law and the strong commitment made by member states to respect the sovereign choices of Afghanistan, this is an internal social matter of Afghanistan that does not impact outside states. We remain committed to ensuring all rights of Afghan women while emphasizing that diversity must be respected and not politicized.
Welcoming the resolution’s acknowledgement that engagement is the only realistic path, we stand ready to work jointly with neighboring, regional and world countries and organizations to tackle challenges such as humanitarian access, economic recovery, trade, transit, access to Afghan Central Bank assets, development, security, narcotics, and other areas of interest through continued dialogue and engagement.
