DUSHANBE, 27.09.2021 (NIAT Khovar) – Turkey and the Taliban have not agreed on the presence of Turkish representatives at the Kabul Airport, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said yesterday in an interview broadcast on CBS.

He said that Turkey has not yet reached a consensus with the Taliban.

“It is meaningless to talk about these things where we are not present, because we are not currently at the airport,” added the Turkish President.

When asked whether he will cooperate with a government that only allows boys to go to school and prohibits women from holding public office, President Erdogan replied that Turkey’s approach to women’s issues is well known.

“Women are present in every aspect of life, in education, in health, in justice, in judiciary. So, as long as this is the situation in our country, why would we have a different stance when it comes to Afghanistan? Our views apply to Afghanistan too. Regarding the issues that I have just listed, if they will be agreed upon, if they will be accepted and recognized, we can do business with them, but if not, we will not be doing business with them,” he stressed.

President Erdoğan explained why his country refused to cooperate with the Taliban in ensuring the operation of the Kabul Airport. He said that although his country has a historical relationship with Afghanistan, Turkish citizens have been evacuated due to the «mistakes that had been made.» «The government in Afghanistan is not inclusive, is not embracing all different factions. So long as that will continue, Turkey will not be present in Afghanistan,” he said.

Earlier, President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon once again reiterated the need to create an inclusive government in Afghanistan, including on August 25, during a meeting with the Pakistani Foreign Minister in Dushanbe, on September 8 in his speech on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of state independence, and on September 24 at the 76th session of the UN General Assembly.

He believes that in order to urgently address the political and security problems in the neighboring country, it is necessary to establish an inclusive government with the participation of all national minorities, especially Tajiks who make up more than 46% of the population in Afghanistan.

“Tajikistan will not recognize any other government formed by oppression and prosecution, and without taking into account the interest of all Afghan citizens, especially the minorities,” noted President Emomali Rahmon.