By Banafsha Binesh in TOLOnews Online, June 09, 2023 at 9:13 PM
Speaking at a press conference, the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia and the US stressed the need to prevent Afghanistan from becoming a safe haven for terrorist groups.
The Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud reiterated that “we need to focus our work more in Afghanistan so that Afghanistan cannot be a safe haven again for terrorist groups.”
“We need to work together on common challenges and provide the right environment for the repatriation of IDPs to Iraq and Syria, and to also recover the citizens or the diaspora in other countries,” he said.
Speaking at the same press conference, the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, said that Washington has demonstrated since ending America’s longest war that it would continue to be “focused on our core national security interest in preventing the resurgence of terrorism emanating from Afghanistan, and if necessary, taking action to deal with it.”
“I think we’ve demonstrated quite clearly in recent months our ability to do just that, including eliminating a senior leader of al-Qaida, who was resident in Afghanistan. In addition, we’re working with partners, with neighbors to strengthen the capacity to deal with any terrorism that may be located in Afghanistan and emanating from there,” Blinken said as quoted by the Department of State.
This comes as the Islamic Emirate’s spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid, said that the Global Coalition to Defeat Daesh should not overplay the issue of Daesh in Afghanistan.
“Daesh is not a threat for anyone, and it is being eliminated. Of course, our operations over the past two years have been against their sanctuaries and more than 100 of them have been eliminated,” Mujahid said.
Political analysts gave various opinions on the matter:
“Many of them originated from Pakistan and they are being exported to other countries. I think Daesh is hidden in Afghanistan-Pakistan and border areas with Central Asia. But their activities have significantly dropped compared to before,” said Sarwar Niazai, political analyst.
“The fight that the Islamic Emirate has waged against Daesh, the world countries also acknowledged that they have succeeded in these areas,” said Sayed Akbar Sial, a political analyst.
Earlier, the Foreign Minister of Russia Sergey Lavrov claimed that the US provides strong support to Daesh and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan, TASS reported.
https://tolonews.com/afghanistan-183713
- AFGHAN SCENE-CHINA
Acting Ministry of Mines and Petroleum Meets China’s Ambassador in Kabul
By Fidel Rahmati in The Khaama Press Online, June 9, 2023
Acting Minister of Mines and Petroleum of Afghanistan, Shahabuddin Delawar, met Chinese Ambassador Wang Yu in Kabul to discuss Chinese projects and investments.
According to a statement from the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum, during the meeting, the officials discussed investment potential, the extraction process in the Kashkari oil reservoirs, and the start of construction on the Mes Aynak copper.
The Chinese ambassador expressed his satisfaction with his visit to the northern regions, which included the visit to the Kashqari oil field, and he offered details about the project’s financial, administrative, and technical plans.
Meanwhile, the Ministry called for speeding up the implementation phase of the project and social services included in the contract.
According to the report, several countries, including China, are interested in investing in Afghanistan’s ore deposits, including Lithium.
“Several countries and investors have expressed interest in the lithium deposits in addition to the Chinese. The Chinese even said they are prepared to invest $10 billion,” Ministry said.
“We have large reserves of Lithium worldwide. Our country is on the global list of countries rich in Lithium, and our lithium reserves are largely in Kunar, Nuristan and Helmand provinces,” according to the Ministry.
Earlier in April, the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum said that a Chines company, Gochin expressed its interest in investing $ 10 billion in Afghanistan’s lithium resources.
The statement said the investment would create 120,000 direct and a million indirect job opportunities in the country.
China has influenced Afghanistan through relations with the present government on an economic and investment level ever since the Taliban took over the country.
According to several media reports, Chinese corporations have long desired access to Afghanistan’s extensive and productive lithium mines, estimated to be worth more than $3 trillion.
https://www.khaama.com/acting-ministry-of-mines-and-petroleum-meets-chinas-ambassador-in-kabul/
