The Taliban will sign an agreement with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on the operation of airports in Afghanistan, the group’s deputy prime minister said on Tuesday, after months of talks with the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Qatar.
Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar made the announcement in a tweet and later told reporters in Kabul that his government was renewing an airport ground service agreement with the UAE. Abu Dhabi-based GAAC Solutions will operate Herat, Kabul and Kandahar airports.
It was not immediately clear whether the deal included anything beyond existing arrangements or included airport security, a sensitive issue for the Taliban, who have fought for decades against US-led NATO troops and say they do not want the return of international forces.
A source familiar with the negotiations said that a stalemate in the negotiations with Qatar was the condition of Doha that Qatari security personnel be present at the airport.
Qatar and Turkey had already sent temporary technical teams to help with airport operations and security following the Taliban took power in August last year as foreign forces withdrew.
The airport talks have shown how countries seek to assert their influence in Afghanistan, even when the hardline Islamist group remains largely an international outcast and its government is not officially recognized by any country.
The Emirates wants to gnaw on Qatar’s diplomatic influence there, sources said last year as talks began.
Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have had strained relations for years as they compete for regional influence.
Petros Kranias
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Source: Capital
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