US President Joe Biden and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi emphasized the importance of the formation of an inclusive political structure in Afghanistan and “called on the Taliban to respect human rights of all Afghans, including women and girls, and to respect freedom of movement,” a joint statement said from the United States and India released by White House on Thursday.
The statement added that the leaders reiterated their strong support for a peaceful, secure and stable Afghanistan.
According to the statement, they discussed the current humanitarian situation and concurred on the need to continue to provide immediate humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan.
The leaders urged the Taliban to abide by UN Security Council Resolution 2593, which demands that Afghan territory should never be used to threaten or attack any country, shelter or train terrorists, or plan or finance terrorist attacks, the statement read.
Meanwhile, the statement also added that the leaders committed to continue close consultations on the situation in Afghanistan.
The remarks were made during the Prime Minister of India Modi’s visit to the US, where American President Joe Biden hosted him at the White House.
“Grave, systematic and institutionalized discrimination against women and girls is at the heart of Taliban ideology and rule, which also raises concerns that they may be responsible for gender apartheid,” UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Afghanistan Richard Bennett told reporters in Geneva.
Since the Taliban took power in 2021, they banned all Afghan women from education and restricted their work with UN aid agencies.
