New York: The UN Security Council on Friday split a key sanctions list on al Qaeda and the Taliban to boost reconciliation process in Afghanistan.
The unanimous resolution of the Security Council also passed an specific criteria fro having an individual delisted. The move will make it easier to add and remove people and entities from the sanctions lists.
“It sends a clear signal that now is the time for the Taliban to come forward and join the political process,” Mark Lyall Grant, the UK ambassador to the UN, told the council.
The creation of two separate lists seemed to be an admission that the relationship between the two organizations has changed since the sanctions regime was created in 1999.
“The link between al Qaeda and the Taliban has not disappeared, but it’s not the same as in 1999,” French Ambassador Gérard Araud told the council.
The two resolutions passed by the council give the Afghan government a greater position in determining who is on the Taliban sanctions list.
“From now on, the Afghan government has a visible and distinct role in the process of listing and delisting,” German Ambassador Peter Wittig said.
The United States is set to begin withdrawing troops from Afghanistan next month. In a statement, US Ambassador Susan Rice said that the resolution “sends a clear message to the Taliban that there is a future for those who separate from al Qaeda, renounce violence and abide by the Afghan constitution.”
Meanwhile, the UN Security Council will consider removing about 20 former senior Taliban commanders from an international sanctions list to boost reconciliation efforts in Afghanistan.
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