Qatari official says recognising Taliban government not a priority

Taliban delegates meet with U.S. and European delegates in Doha, Qatar October 12, 2021. REUTERS/Stringer

DOHA (Reuters) -Qatar believes that recognising the Taliban government in Afghanistan is not a priority now, and that the focus should be on engaging with the new administration and addressing humanitarian issues, a senior Qatari official said on Tuesday.

Mutlaq Al-Qahtani, special envoy of the Qatari foreign minister, urged other countries to engage more deeply with the Taliban as Afghanistan's de facto authority, while urging the Islamist movement to act as a "responsible" administration and respect the right of women to work and girls to attend school.