While Turkey is set to continue its presence in Afghanistan at the request of the United States and NATO after the withdrawal of foreign troops, the Taliban have expressed opposition to the move. Rejecting the continued presence of Turkish troops to secure Kabul airport, Soheil Shahin, a senior member of the Taliban negotiating team, said that under the Qatar agreement, Turkish troops must leave Afghanistan at the same time as the US and NATO troops.
“Turkey has been part of NATO for the past 20 years, so they should also leave Afghanistan in accordance with the agreement we signed on February 29, 2020,” Shahin told Reuters.
He added: “Otherwise, Turkey is a great Islamic country and Afghanistan has had historical relations with it.” We hope to have close and good relations with the new Islamic State in Afghanistan in the future.
The US State Department or Turkey have not yet commented on the Taliban’s stance.
Turkish Defense Minister Khulusi Akar recently announced that Turkish troops would continue their presence in Afghanistan to ensure the security of Kabul Airport if other NATO member states adhere to certain political, financial, and logistical commitments.
Earlier, the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, Mark Millie, said that NATO was considering how to secure Kabul airport after leaving Afghanistan and that this was necessary to ensure that US and European embassies were protected in Afghanistan.
Experts, therefore, see the continued presence of Turkish troops in Afghanistan as a good way to secure Kabul airport and, consequently, the continued presence of foreign embassies, as the Taliban have never attacked Turkish forces in the past two decades.
