During the event, the correspondent of the Brussels Morning Newspaper Sadid Liluma asked Abdulaziz Kamilova to tell in more detail what is the next plan for Uzbekistan in relation to the Taliban movement and the Haqqani network.

The journalist stressed that no one should recognize the Taliban, because up to 17 Taliban members in the government are on the US blacklist.

“If we are talking about humanitarian support and providing assistance to the government or the Taliban regime, how can we be sure that this assistance will ultimately reach the vulnerable people of Afghanistan who really need it? Also, I hope that you have spoken to high-level Taliban officials, pressured them to accept women into government, and have given them a better chance as before. Otherwise, without Afghan women in the Cabinet of Ministers or government, I am confident that we will lose all the opportunities that we have had over these twenty years. As far as I know, Uzbekistan is an Islamic country. There is no problem and anyone can become a minister or a member of parliament. And I hope in this regard, you are trying to have good negotiations with the Taliban,” she said.

The head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan recommended looking at the situation from a different angle.

“I perfectly understand how difficult it is to overcome psychological barriers. Therefore, over the past twenty years, the coalition has fought against the Taliban. However, kindly look at the situation from a different angle. The Taliban are not only the main force in Afghanistan, but also a part of Afghan society. They have never organized terrorist attacks outside national borders. You cannot give a single example of a terrorist attack organized by the Taliban in Central Asia, Europe, the United States, South Asia or anywhere else,” Kamilov said.

The head of the foreign ministry stressed that this is reality.

“You have a lot of questions, but no suggestions on what to do. And so we take into account reality. And over the past twenty years, and in general over the past forty years, the great powers have not been able to resolve the situation in Afghanistan. Now some countries are offering funding and asking in return to host thousands of refugees, which is a dead end. We don’t understand this,” he said.

The minister said that the military coalition, which has fought for the past twenty years, is also responsible for the current situation in Afghanistan.

“Therefore, I think, I feel that you do not have enough news and information about Afghanistan, maybe because there is no communication channel between Europe and the Taliban and with the Afghans in general. Therefore, you cannot accept reality, you cannot establish any informal contacts with the interim government. But, despite this, there must be a communication channel. I think so. As for your question about what Uzbekistan is going to do in the future: we will continue our policy, which we adhere to today,” Kamilov concluded.