Afghanistan continues to be at the heart of Jean-Yves Le Drian’s agenda. The French Minister of Foreign Affairs is going this Sunday and until Monday in Qatar to see how to continue the evacuations to France after the chaotic American withdrawal at the end of August.
“We are going to try to move forward with the Qatari authorities on the means of continuing the evacuations of both our compatriots who remain in Afghanistan and of the Afghans who by their fight, their previous action are now in danger. Regarding the Taliban, ”he explained on France 5 on Saturday. In Doha, he will meet on Monday with Qatari officials, people around him said, without giving further details.
A Kabul-Doha flight with French people on Friday
There are still “a few French people, very few” to be evacuated to France and a few hundred Afghans, threatened for having had links with French institutions or for their role in fields – culture, defense of human rights – hated. Taliban, further clarified the head of French diplomacy.
Forty-nine French nationals and members of their families were able to leave Kabul on Friday for Doha, on the second evacuation flight organized with the help of the Qataris since the departure of the American forces and the end of the western air point. These nationals were still in Doha on Saturday. They must be brought back to France on a flight chartered by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Qatar, a must
Qatar is very involved in these evacuations as in the relaunch of the Kabul airport. Doha, a major interlocutor of the Taliban, has thus become the capital of diplomacy on Afghanistan. Many foreign ministers have been there since the end of August, from the German Heiko Maas to the American Antony Blinken.
Jean-Yves Le Drian also reiterated that the Taliban did not meet international expectations and that under these conditions “France refuses to recognize and have any relationship whatsoever with this government”. ” They lie [sur toutes leurs promesses] and for the moment the results are not there ”. “We are waiting for the Taliban to act. They will need a little economic ventilation, they will need international relations, ”he also predicted.