US: Taliban acts against Washington’s interests.
“Jonathan Schreyer, the US representative to the UN Economic and Social Council, announced that he voted against Resolution A/79/L.100 on the situation in Afghanistan in the UN General Assembly, citing the Taliban’s continued lack of accountability and the ineffective approach of the international community towards this group.
Referring to the passage of nearly four years of Taliban rule, the US representative said at the meeting: “We are still talking to the same Taliban officials without holding them accountable or changing their behavior. This resolution is also a repetition of the same policies of the past; policies that have rewarded the Taliban instead of punishing them.”
He emphasized that the Taliban are not only not cooperating in areas such as counterterrorism, drugs, and regional security, but are also acting against stability with “hostage diplomacy.”
The US representative added: “The Taliban must stop behaving like insurgent groups once and for all. The United States demands the release of all its detained citizens and an end to the hostage-taking.”
According to Schreier, the current approach to humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people is “unsustainable,” and the situation cannot be expected to improve until the Taliban are held accountable.
He also expressed concern about parts of the resolution that commend the Islamic Republic of Iran, describing it as “the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism.”
The US representative also stressed that the Taliban’s behavior shows no signs of reform or readiness for constructive engagement and is also seriously skeptical of the Doha process. “Whenever the Taliban are willing to talk, they are only engaging on their terms and to the detriment of the interests of the international community,” he said.