Taliban acting foreign minister meets Chinese ambassador in Kabul
Sep 14, 2021
Kabul [Afghanistan], September 14 : Taliban government's acting foreign minister Amir Khan Mutaqi on Tuesday met Chinese Ambassador to Afghanistan Wang Yu, Taliban spokesperson said.
According to Tolo News, Taliban spokesperson Mohammad Naeem said that "China has pledged USD 15 million worth of humanitarian aid and continued support for Afghanistan".
"The Taliban govt's acting foreign minister Amir Khan Mutaqi met with the Chinese envoy to Kabul, Wang Yu, on Tuesday, Taliban spox Mohammad Naeem tweeted, saying China has pledged USD 15 million worth of humanitarian aid and continued support for Afghanistan," Tolo News tweeted.
This comes after the United States announced nearly USD 64 million in additional humanitarian assistance for the people of Afghanistan.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday (local time) said the US assistance to Afghanistan would circumvent the Taliban and go directly to non-government organisations and UN agencies providing relief to impoverished Afghans.
China has a vested interest in Afghanistan as its development projects Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) passes through the region. China is seeing an opportunity to extend its multi-billion-dollar BRI projects into the country.
China, which has been closely watching unfolding developments in Afghanistan, aims to expand its influence in Pakistan and across Central and South Asia with China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in order to counter the influence of the United States.
The CPEC would link Pakistan's southern Gwadar port (626 kilometers west of Karachi) in Balochistan on the Arabian Sea to China's western Xinjiang region. It also includes plans to create road, rail, and oil pipeline links to improve connectivity between China and the Middle East.
