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Taliban Calls On US To Recognize Their Government, Says Failure To Do So Could Have Consequences

(Photo by ALEXANDER ZEMLIANICHENKO/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

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The Taliban warned the U.S. and the rest of the global community Saturday that their decision to withhold formal recognition of Afghanistan’s new government may result in consequences for the world.

“Our message to America is, if unrecognition continues, Afghan problems continue, it is the problem of the region and could turn into a problem for the world,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said at Saturday’s press conference, according to Reuters.

Mujahid noted that absence of formal diplomatic ties between Afghanistan and the U.S. led to the military invasion in 2001, Reuters reported. (RELATED: Biden Administration Meets With ‘Senior Taliban Representatives,’ Describes Talks As ‘Candid And Professional’)

“Those issues which caused the war, they could have been solved through negotiation, they could have been solved through political compromise too,” the spokesperson said, according to Reuters.

Mujahid then reportedly went on to claim that international recognition was Afghan people’s right.

Although not yet recognized by a single country in the world, the Taliban are counting on China to provide financial assistance to Afghanistan’s struggling economy. China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Taliban officials in Doha, Qatar, in late October, Reuters reported.

The spokesperson also added that China had vowed to inject funds into Afghanistan’s transport infrastructure, as well as to provide Kabul’s exports access to Chinese markets via neighboring Pakistan.

U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland said the Biden administration’s strategy in regard to the Taliban was a “far cry” from formal recognition during a briefing in September. However, she did not claim that the U.S. would never recognize the organization.