While the Taliban continue on this path, international recognition will not be on the table: UK statement at UN Security Council
Statement by Ambassador Barbara Woodward at the UN Security Council meeting on the situation in Afghanistan.
Thank you President, and I thank SRSG Otunbayeva for her clear report and Ms Shabana Basij-Rasikh for your extraordinary report and for shining a spotlight on the importance and potential of girls’ education, and giving us the hope and the possibility of Afghanistan spiraling upwards towards hope.
Since the Taliban’s takeover in August 2021, the situation for the Afghan people has been defined by humanitarian suffering, economic hardship, and a relentless assault on human rights.
The figures speak for themselves: two thirds of the Afghan population are in humanitarian need in 2023. Economic output has decreased by over 20 per cent since 2021. Over two million girls between years seven and 11 are unable formally to access secondary school education.
The Taliban has issued over 50 decrees restricting the rights of women and girls and impeded the UN’s ability to deliver humanitarian assistance at a time of dire need.
The trajectory is negative and options are limited. The Afghan people remain our priority – so how can we collectively navigate the months ahead:
First, our commitment to provide support for Afghans remains resolute. We support UN efforts to provide assistance despite the challenging context, while holding firm on the principle that there should be no delivery of aid without women. The UK has contributed well over half a billion dollars to address the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan since April 2021. We call on otherMember States to step up funding, noting the UN’s revised Humanitarian Appeal for Afghanistan for 2023 for $3.2 billion is currently, according to OCHA’s tracker, only 14 percent funded.
Second, the international community should remain united in our message to the Taliban. We have set out our expectations in consecutive Council resolutions: on humanitarian access, cutting ties with terrorists, respect for human rights and inclusive governance. And. in April, we unanimously agreed a resolution condemning restrictions on the rights of women and girls.
Finally, these clear expectations should be matched by clear consequences – while the Taliban continue on this path, international recognition will not be on the table, sanctions relief and development assistance will not come. We recognise that continued engagement, predicated on these fundamentals, is the only way forward. The Secretary-General’s meeting of Special Envoys in Doha was a good first step and we too look forward to the independent review of Ambassador Feridun Sinirlioğlu.
Afghanistan cannot be self-reliant when 50 percent of its population is excluded from society and history has shown that there can be no stable and durable peace whilst large swathes of society and ethnic groups are excluded.
I thank you, President.