New Afghan leaders meet British envoy

KABUL, Afghanistan－A senior British envoy held talks with top Taliban officials in Kabul on Tuesday－the first since Western forces evacuated from Afghanistan－as the country's new rulers seek a path out of isolation.

The Islamist movement declared a new regime after overrunning the capital in August and ousting the government backed by the United States.

But after 20 years of war, the aid-reliant country faces an economic crisis, with major donors suspending funds and no emergency support in place. The United Nations warned that half of Afghanistan's children under the age of 5 are expected to suffer from severe malnutrition as hunger takes root amid serious food shortages.

The new rulers have been courting foreign countries in a bid to restart cash flows to the country, where civil servants and healthcare workers have gone for months without salaries.

In a statement, the Taliban said it was committed to good relations with all countries.

"In return, we want the international community to return the cash capital of the Afghan nation to our nation," it said, referring to billions in Afghan assets frozen in US accounts.

Taliban officials tweeted pictures of the first meeting with Simon Gass, Britain's special representative for Afghanistan, and Afghan Deputy prime ministers Abdul Ghani Baradar and Abdul Salam Hanafi.

The British team, which flew in on a flight facilitated by Qatar, secured the release of Ben Slater, a former British soldier who was detained by the Taliban on the Pakistani border last month as he tried to escort Afghan refugees to safety.

He flew out of Kabul with the British delegation, said a UK government official.

The two sides discussed how Britain can help Afghanistan battle terrorism and a deepening humanitarian crisis, and provide a safe passage for those who want to leave the country, said a UK government spokesperson.

"They also raised the treatment of minorities and the rights of women and girls," said the spokesperson, adding that Gass was joined by Martin Longden, the charge d'affaires of the UK mission in Afghanistan.

Abdul Qahar Balkhi, the Taliban's Foreign Ministry spokesman, said the meeting focused on detailed discussions about reviving diplomatic relations between the two countries.

But a UK official was more cautious, stressing that the visit did not represent recognition or "legitimacy" for the Taliban, but rather an opening for a channel of communication and contact building.

'Inclusive' government

The Taliban's meeting with British diplomats came a day after they met with an Iranian delegation－another first since assuming the helm－to discuss trade relations, a key driver of Afghanistan's economy.

They agreed to increase trading hours at the Islam Qala border crossing from eight hours per day to 24, and to better regulate tariff collection and improve roadworks. Customs are a key source of domestic revenue for Afghanistan.

Western governments have warned that the Taliban must form an "inclusive" government and respect human and women's rights if they are to be formally recognized.

Neighboring Pakistan, however, has been pushing for the international community to quickly engage with the new rulers and help stabilize a country threatened by famine.

In signs that the Islamists may be trying to soften their public image after 50 days in power, the Taliban announced at a rally earlier that some female civil servants have been called back to work.

Interior Ministry spokesman Qari Sayed Khosti said that all staff members of the passport department, including female employees, were asked to return to their offices.

Khosti said his ministry intended to start issuing Afghan passports again after the system broke down with the fall of the previous US-backed government.

Agencies via Xinhua