International community should play positive role in political transition

EU foreign chief calls out failures, while Biden looks to keep troops back for evacuations

Britain's foreign minister, Dominic Raab, is facing demands to resign following reports he declined to phone his counterpart in Afghanistan last week to get help with the evacuation of interpreters from Kabul who had worked for the British military.

UNITED NATIONS -- UN humanitarians said Thursday that the relief crisis in Afghanistan is deteriorating rapidly, with 12.2 million people acutely food insecure.

MOSCOW - Russian President Vladimir Putin held phone conversations with French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi respectively on Thursday to discuss the situation in Afghanistan.

An official told Reuters that the current intelligence assessment was that the Taliban are believed to control more than 2,000 American armored vehicles and up to 40 aircraft, potentially including UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, and military drones.

The Taliban met on Wednesday with former Afghan president Hamid Karzai as the group is seeking to form a new government in the war-torn country, with the international community calling for more talks and peace and stability in Afghanistan.

US President Joe Biden said Wednesday that troops would remain in Afghanistan until all Americans who wanted to leave the country were evacuated.

The heads of United Nations agencies in Afghanistan are calling on the international community to continue to provide financial aid to the war-torn country, where millions of people are suffering from food insecurity and also face challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and an ongoing drought.

ANKARA - Turkey welcomes the "moderate" statements made by the Taliban leaders in Afghanistan, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday.

After two decades trying to destroy the Taliban, Western powers face the wrenching decision of whether to deal with the Islamist group that has taken over Afghanistan.

Rival camps find rare consensus to press for answers as Biden ratings fall

Russia commended the Taliban's initial assurances as a "positive signal" after its ambassador had a constructive meeting with Taliban representatives in Kabul on Tuesday.