Swiss Ambassador to the UN Pascale Baeriswyl said Monday that the situation in Afghanistan under Taliban rule is a “very difficult dilemma” to deal with as millions of Afghans need humanitarian assistance.
Marking the beginning of Switzerland’s presidency of the Security Council on Monday, Baeriswyl said that there is no “magic solution” for the situation of the country.
“I really hope that the Doha meeting leads to a discussion of how to handle the situation,” she told reporters.
She added that the Taliban’s decision to ban Afghan women from working for aid agencies in the country is “unacceptable” and that “it’s not possible to implement projects without women being able to work so it’s a very difficult dilemma.
“We do not have the magic solution,” she said adding that she hopes “the Doha meeting leads to a discussion of how to handle the situation and that the Taliban are impressed also by the unified voice of the Security Council.”
This comes as UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday began a two-day closed-door meeting on Afghanistan in Doha with special envoys from at least 20 countries.
U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said last week that the purpose of the meeting is “to achieve a common understanding within the international community on how to engage with the Taliban.”
According to Dujarric, key issues – including human rights, particularly Afghan women’s and girls’ rights; inclusive governance; countering terrorism; and drug trafficking – will be discussed in the meeting.
The meeting is being attended by the representatives of China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Norway, Pakistan, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Britain, the United States, Uzbekistan, the European Union and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
