Turkey 'in no rush' to recognize Taliban government

Taliban Spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid announcing the interim government. (Photo: AA)

As the Taliban just announced an interim cabinet for Afghanistan, Turkey is carefully monitoring developments in the country, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said yesterday (September 7).

"We don't know how long this interim cabinet will last. All we have to do is to follow this process carefully," Erdoğan told a joint press conference with Felix Tshisekedi, his Democratic Republic of Congo counterpart in the capital city of Ankara.

Earlier, Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said Turkey was in no rush to recognize the Taliban government and was closely following the developments in the country.

The Taliban announced an "interim government" in Afghanistan to be led by Mullah Mohammad Hasan Akhundzada.

The announcement came a day after the group said they had taken full control of the country, following their capture of Panjshir.

On future operations of the airport in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, Erdoğan said Turkey has taken a positive approach from the start, but such developments are not yet concrete.

Turkey has been willing to run and protect the Kabul airport following the withdrawal of the US-led forces from the country. It eventually pulled its soldiers out of the country after the Taliban refused the plan.

However, it still has technical staff in the airport to help international flights resume, according to Çavuşoğlu.

As the Taliban refuses any foreign military presence across the country, certain companies that can ensure security can be responsible for safety issues until the Taliban proves reliable to provide international flight standards, the minister said. (VK)