Alwaght- A Taliban delegation led by acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi arrived in Oslo on Monday for three-day talks with Western governments on Afghanistan's humanitarian crisis.
In their first visit to Europe since returning to power in August, the Taliban will meet representatives of the United States, France, Britain, Germany, Italy, the European Union and Norway.
The closed-door discussions, facilitated by Norway, are being held at the Soria Moria Hotel, on a snowy hilltop outside Oslo.
The discussions are expected to focus on Afghanistan's humanitarian situation, which has deteriorated drastically since last August when Talibans stormed back to power 20 years after being toppled. No country has yet recognized the Taliban government.
The leverage the West has on the Taliban is nearly $10bn of Afghan money that is held predominantly in the US. Amir Khan Muttaqi reportedly seeks to get some of that money back to pay civil servants’ salaries and to make sure that there is enough food in the country because the humanitarian situation has been getting quite desperate.
International aid came to a halt, worsening the plight of millions of people already suffering from hunger after several severe droughts.
