Foreign Minister Mohammad Haneef Atmar on Tuesday said that Qatar will host two key meetings on Afghanistan in the coming days but added that there is a need for more action by the international community beyond merely issuing statements from these events. 

Atmar said that two important meetings will be held in Qatar in the coming days: one with regional and international allies and an Extended Troika session. 

“In these two meetings, the firmness of the region and the international community through political means should be explained to the Taliban so they know that they are not only facing the people and the government of Afghanistan but also they are also facing a united stance of the region and the international community, and they must end violence,” Atmar said at a news conference.

Atmar said that two meetings were hosted by Kabul with representatives of over 20 countries from the region and representatives of 15 other countries and organizations to discuss the challenging security situation in Afghanistan, the political situation, the violation of human rights “by the Taliban” and the Afghan government’s security plan. 

Atmar said that they told the representatives that the Taliban is supported by “foreign terrorists” and that the group is focusing their attacks on cities rather than focusing on peace efforts.  

He said that the Afghan government at the session asked the international community to put pressure on the Taliban to respect human rights and return to meaningful negotiations. 

“Our focus was on the International Criminal Court, the International Human Rights Organization, the council of human rights, and the High Commissioner of the UN for Human Rights,” Atmar said, referring to his meetings with the representatives. 

Atmar added that the Qatar negotiations must succeed as they have the full support of Afghans and the international community.  

He stated that the Qatar negotiations have one hurdle: the Taliban's insistence on totalitarianism and their focus on fighting. 

This comes as heavy fighting has continued in two major cities, Lashkargah and Herat, for the last week, leaving many people displaced and dozens killed in both provinces.