Turkey’s Ambassador to China, Abdulkadir Emin Onen, told China’s Global Times in an exclusive interview published yesterday, that his government has adopted a policy of “gradual engagement” with the new interim Taliban government, but wishes to see “all sectors of Afghan society” to be incorporated for durable peace to be secured. Turkey evacuated its civilians and troops from Afghanistan except for a small technical group, he said, because of the instability of the situation, but is keeping its Embassy open in Kabul, according to the Global Times both to maintain a diplomatic presence and continue dialogue with the Taliban. Turkey also has “serious concerns” about terrorist groups reemerging in the power vacuum and instability, he said, and will not take in any refugees, because it has so many from Syria already.
But Ambassador Oren expressed Turkey’s willingness to cooperate with all parties to achieve peace and stability. “With this understanding, we also support various regional efforts focusing on enhancing economic, energy and infrastructure connectivity, including the Belt and Road Initiative. There is ample room for cooperation between Turkey and China in these sectors, particularly in the reconstruction process of Afghanistan in the time ahead,” he told Global Times.
