China woos the Taliban in Afghanistan with food and vaccines

Taliban whip women protesters in Kabul 1:44

(CNN) -

China will provide nearly $ 31 million worth of food, winter supplies, vaccines and medicine to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, China's Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.

Hua Chunyin, a spokesman for the Foreign Ministry, said the decision was announced during the first meeting of the foreign ministers of Afghanistan's neighboring countries and would be "for emergency use by the Afghan people."

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi also announced that China will donate 3 million doses of vaccines to Afghanistan in the first batch, according to the Chinese state news agency Xinhua.

It is not clear when the delivery of the vaccines is scheduled.

Chinese leaders have repeatedly said that China would share its coronavirus vaccines with the world, especially low-income countries, and officials had previously promised that Afghanistan would be among several on the priority access list.

Speaking at the Foreign Minister's meeting in Beijing via video link, Wang also said that the United States and its allies were more obligated than any other country to provide economic and humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people.

advertising

Following the United States' withdrawal from Afghanistan and the subsequent takeover by the Taliban, Wang said the United States should "assume its responsibilities" in the country by helping to ensure its development and stability while "respecting the sovereignty and independence of Afghanistan." Xinhua reported.

On Tuesday, the Taliban announced the formation of an interim hardline government for Afghanistan, occupying the top posts with veterans from the Islamist group that oversaw the 20-year fight against the US-led military coalition.

Wang called on the Taliban to crack down on terrorism and unite with the country's ethnic groups.

He said Afghanistan's regional neighbors, which include Pakistan, Iran, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, should coordinate and cooperate with them to "build a comprehensive and inclusive political structure, apply moderate and prudent internal and external policies, draw a clear line with terrorist forces, "according to Xinhua.

The main figures of the Taliban government 2:59

China woos the Taliban

China shares an 80-kilometer border with China's western Xinjiang region at the end of the narrow Wakhan Corridor and has substantial investment in the wider region.

Following a high-profile meeting between Taliban leaders and China's Foreign Minister in Tianjin in July, Wang called the Taliban "a major military and political force in Afghanistan" and declared that they would play "an important role in the process. of peace, reconciliation and reconstruction of the country "

In return, the Taliban called China a "good friend" and pledged "never to allow any force to use Afghan territory to engage in acts harmful to China," according to a statement from China's Foreign Ministry on the meeting.

Last week, a Taliban spokesman called for closer relations with Beijing in an interview with the Chinese state broadcaster CGTN.

"China is a very important and strong country in our neighborhood, and we have had very positive and good relations with China in the past," said Zabihullah Mujahid.

"We want to further strengthen these relationships and we want to improve the level of mutual trust."

However, China has also benefited from the relative stability brought by the United States over the past two decades.

The nation is also particularly concerned that Afghanistan will become a base for terrorists and extremists fighting for independence from the largely Muslim region of Xinjiang, a priority issue that Wang raised with Taliban leaders during their July meeting.

CNN's Nectar Gan and Steve George contributed to this report.

Taliban