For the first time since the Taliban came to power, German diplomats have returned to the Afghan capital, Kabul.

As a Taliban spokesman announced on Thursday, the designated German ambassador Markus Potzel and the special envoy for Afghanistan, Jaspar Wieck, met with the deputy prime ministers of the Taliban government, Abdul Salam Hanafi and Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar.

The Afghan side therefore advocated the release of funds from the ousted government, which are blocked by the international community, and warned of the effects of the humanitarian crisis in the country.

The Taliban posted pictures of the talks on Twitter.  

Alexander Haneke

Editor in politics.

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As the Foreign Office announced in the evening, the delegation, which also included the Dutch ambassador, also met the de facto Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi and the de facto director of the secret service, Abdul Haq Wasiq.

Since the Taliban came to power, the ranks of which include internationally wanted terrorists, the German government has been faced with the problem of wanting to provide humanitarian aid in order to prevent the situation from deteriorating further.

At the same time, pressure should be maintained on the Taliban to meet the demands of the international community. 

The de facto Afghan government authorities committed to providing humanitarian workers - including aid workers - safe and unhindered access to communities and people in need. Germany and the Netherlands reaffirmed their readiness to provide the Afghan people with extensive humanitarian aid, especially with a view to the approaching winter.

In the course of the talks, the Taliban expressed their understanding that "equal access for girls and boys to education is a national necessity for Afghanistan," the Federal Foreign Office said later.

In particular, it was about the general right to primary and secondary education up to 12th grade and the need for teachers "to be able to do their extremely important work from grade 1 to grade 12".

The curricula for the schools remained unchanged. 

According to this, Germany agreed to work with international partners to examine ways in which the salaries of employees in the health sector and teachers could be paid directly through international organizations.

Commitment to general amnesty

It was also said that the Taliban had once again committed to the general amnesty they had issued when they came to power. After individual Taliban troops had repeatedly attacked former opponents of the Islamists, the leadership now agreed "that this message should also be spread more widely within Afghanistan".

However, there has been contact between the two sides for a long time.

Potzel, who was the German ambassador to Afghanistan between 2014 and 2016 and who served as the federal government's special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan until the summer, has been negotiating with representatives of the Taliban from Qatar since the end of August.

This also involves the further evacuation of former local German forces in Afghanistan and other vulnerable Afghans whom Germany has promised protection. 

In addition to the Taliban leadership, the delegation also met former President Hamid Karzai and former Prime Minister Abdullah Abdullah in Kabul.

Both advocate the participation of non-Taliban forces in the government.

The visit does not involve any recognition of the Taliban government or the establishment of official diplomatic relations.

The Federal Government always points out that it only wants to take such steps in coordination with the European partners.

This issue also addresses the demand for inclusive government and the protection of women and minorities.