UNSC to Convene for Discussion on Afghanistan

The five permanent members of the UN Security Council (UNSC)— the US, Russia, the UK, China and France—will meet today to discuss the current situation in Afghanistan.

Today’s meeting will mark the first time the member states have convened since August 16, the day after the Taliban captured Kabul and asserted nationwide control.

Expect discussion to focus primarily on responding to the August 26 bombing of Kabul’s Hamid Karzai airport—claimed by the terrorist group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Khorasan Province (ISIL-KP). The attack killed 169 Afghan civilians and 13 members of the US military—during the continued evacuation of Afghan and international citizens from the country. Today’s discussion will likely focus on international approval for increased US air and drone strikes targeting ISIL-KP members throughout Afghanistan.

Interestingly, this meeting may herald a tentative—though limited—recognition of the Taliban as the official governing force in Afghanistan. The UNSC released a statement on August 27 condemning the bombings but removed a reference to the Taliban’s possible support of terrorism. This edit may signal an increased recognition of the Taliban’s rule and an effort to avoid increasing hostilities with Afghanistan’s de facto leadership.

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