UN Envoy DiCarlo Holds Talks with Taliban Leaders on Aid, Economy and Anti-Narcotics in Kabul

UN Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo held talks with Afghan Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani in Kabul on Sunday, the Taliban-led Interior Ministry said.

The meeting focused on engagement between the Taliban and the international community, cooperation in anti-narcotics operations, strengthening Afghanistan’s economic stability, easing restrictions on the private sector, and ensuring the effectiveness of UN humanitarian assistance.

Haqqani highlighted the ministry’s efforts to curb drug production and trafficking, which he said had yielded positive results. The UN envoy reportedly assured him that humanitarian aid operations would continue in Afghanistan. The UN delegation, led by DiCarlo, emphasised the importance of “continued engagement.”

DiCarlo, a US diplomat who has served as the UN under-secretary-general since 2018, arrived in Kabul on Saturday. She also met with Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, who urged the UN to support Afghanistan’s struggling economy by easing restrictions and facilitating the release of the country’s central bank assets, currently frozen in the United States.

Muttaqi also raised concerns about drug cultivation in the region, warning that illicit production outside Afghanistan could have serious repercussions for the broader region—a veiled reference to Pakistan amid ongoing tensions.

The talks form part of the third phase of the UN-led Doha process, which aims to establish a political framework and dialogue among the Taliban, the international community, and regional countries to address Afghanistan’s political, security, and humanitarian challenges. Technical working groups under the process are expected to hold their next meetings in Kabul.

So far, three rounds of UN-Taliban talks have been held, with the latest led by DiCarlo and attended by several Islamic Emirate representatives.