Ahead of the Doha meeting, representatives of Afghan women were excluded, allowing the Taliban to send their envoys—despite organizers insisting that women’s rights issues would be addressed.
A United Nations-led meeting in Qatar with the Taliban on increasing engagement with Afghanistan does not equate to recognizing their government, a UN official stated on Monday.
The gathering, held in Doha on Sunday and Monday with envoys from about two dozen countries, marked the first time representatives from the Afghan Taliban administration attended such a UN-sponsored meeting.
The Taliban had not been invited to the first meeting, and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres noted they set unacceptable conditions for attending the second one in February, including demands that Afghan civil society members be excluded and that the Taliban be recognized as the country’s legitimate rulers.
Ahead of Doha, Afghan women’s representatives were excluded, enabling the Taliban to send their envoys—though the organizers insisted that demands for women’s rights would be addressed.
“I would like to emphasize that this meeting and this process of engagement do not mean normalization or recognition,” Rosemary A. DiCarlo, a UN official for political and peacebuilding affairs, said on Monday.
“My hope is that the constructive exchanges on various issues over the last two days have moved us a little closer to resolving some of the problems that are having such a devastating impact on the Afghan people,” she added.
Zabihullah Mujahid, the chief Taliban government spokesman who led the delegation to Doha, said there was an opportunity for them to meet with representatives of various countries on the sidelines of the gathering.
He added that the Taliban’s messages “reached all participating” countries at the meeting. Afghanistan needs cooperation with the private sector and in the fight against drugs, he also said. “Most countries expressed their willingness to cooperate in these areas.”
The talks took place behind closed doors with no media access. However, the Taliban delegation posted videos of the sessions on X featuring their officials.
Michael Kugelman, director of the Wilson Center’s South Asia Institute, noted that the Taliban achieved their objectives from the Doha gathering. They discussed the issues that mattered to them the most and excluded those they didn’t want at the table.
The talks shielded the Taliban from much of the criticism directed at the meeting, as much of the anger targeted the UN for excluding Afghan women rather than the Taliban for being there, he said.
“The Taliban played their cards well. Their conditions were met and they took full advantage with a major PR blitz targeting audiences at home and abroad.”
With images, interviews, and statements, the Taliban projected a narrative of their officials engaging with the world, conveying the idea that they are not the pariahs their critics claim them to be, he said.
No one from the Taliban delegation was immediately available for comment about the Doha talks, the most high-profile and high-level international meeting they have attended since seizing power in 2021.
No country officially recognizes the Taliban, and the UN has stated that recognition remains practically impossible while bans on female education and employment persist.
However, some participants, including Canada, expressed disappointment over the exclusion of women and civil society representatives.
“Canada is extremely disappointed that the UN organizers have excluded non-Taliban Afghan participants, including women’s advocates, religious and ethnic minorities, and human rights groups from participating in the meeting’s main sessions,” David Sproule, Canada’s special representative for Afghanistan, said in a statement.