Afghan Taliban must fulfill its anti-terrorism commitments: US Defense Department

WASHINGTON: United States Department of Defense Spokesperson Matthew Miller said that the Taliban government in Afghanistan needed to honour its anti-terrorism commitments to the international community on Thursday.

During a press briefing in Washington, Miller stated that it was Taliban’s responsibility in preventing terrorists from establishing safe havens within Afghanistan. He further said that the Taliban needed to be vigilant against the “evolving threats” posed by terrorist groups, including Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), also known as Daesh, its regional branch in south and central Asia called Islamic State–Khorasan Province (ISIS-K) and even al-Qaeda.

“We continue to push the Taliban to fulfill all of their counter-terrorist commitments to the international community. We have made it clear to the Taliban that it is their responsibility to ensure that they give no safe haven to terrorists, whether it be al-Qaeda or ISIS-K, or any other terrorist organisation”, he said.

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The spokesperson added that the United States itself was “committed to ensuring that Afghanistan can never again be a launching pad for terrorism”.

Miller detailed the ongoing efforts by the United States to counter emerging terrorist risks. He maintained his country’s commitment of ensuring that other Western countries did not fall victim to terrorist attacks.

“We remain vigilant against the evolving threat posed by terrorist groups, including ISIS-K. We have maintained an unwavering focus on terrorism since the President [Joe Biden] took office three years ago, working both unilaterally and with our partners to successfully disrupt threats around the globe. We will continue to work to hold ISIS accountable for its actions and prevent terrorists attacks against the Untied States and other western countries”, Miller said.

The spokesperson detailed the measures the US has taken to prevent emergence of terrorist groups in the security landscape surrounding Afghanistan and within the country itself.

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“We remain vigilant against the evolving threats of these terrorists groups and our global coalition to defeat ISIS. The C5+1 help intensify our efforts to monitor terrorist threats in the region and prevent terrorists’ ability to raise funds, travel and raise propaganda”, he detailed.  

The “C5+1” refers to a diplomatic forum by the US that involves the Central Asian Republics (CAR) – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Its primary objective is cooperation between the Central Asian states with the US in areas of security, among other.

Miller mentioned that US President’s order in February 2022 helped target terrorist groups including Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), also known as Daesh. Additionally, he noted the elimination of the al-Qaeda leader al-Zawahiri during the same operation.

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“In February 2022 under the President’s order, US military forces successfully targeted Hajji Abdullah, the leader of ISIS. Later that year, under the president’s direction, an air strike in Kabul, Afghanistan killed that emir of a different terrorist group, Al-Qaeda’s al-Zawahiri”.

Meanwhile, on the question of India having submitted a report on the attempted murder of the Sikh human rights lawyer Gurpatwant Singh in New York, Miller deferred by stating he has “not seen those reports”.