China's warm welcome for Taliban sparks backlash at home

In this file photo taken on Aug 18, 2021, a Taliban fighter walks past a beauty salon with images of women defaced using spray paint in Shar-e-Naw in Kabul. - AFP

BEIJING (Bloomberg): China is struggling at home to sell the Taliban as a suitable partner for a country waging a war on alleged Islamic extremism, as it prepares to embrace an Afghanistan led by the militant group.

State media and diplomatic attempts to paper over the group’s past and present it as the "people’s choice” have met sharp criticism at home from those familiar with militant organization’s history of violence and repression of women.