US: Normalizing Relations with Taliban Contingent on Significant Changes to Their Human Rights Behavior

Miller made these remarks during a press briefing on Tuesday (October 8) in response to a question about the US view on Russia's decision to remove the Taliban from its list of terrorist organizations.

He said: "We have not changed our designation of the Taliban as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist Organization, and we continue to make clear that any significant steps toward normalization would be conditioned on fundamental changes to the Taliban’s human rights behavior. There is significant unity in the international community on this issue."

Miller added that while the US has not listed the Taliban as a terrorist organization, it considers the Haqqani network, led by Sirajuddin Haqqani, the acting interior minister of the Taliban, to be a terrorist organization.

It's worth noting that some Central Asian countries have removed the Taliban from their lists of terrorist organizations, and Russia has also stated that it will soon make a decision on this matter.

The US State Department spokesperson emphasized that the rights of women and girls are a priority in US human rights policy, and that they are exerting pressure on the Taliban to this end.

He added: "We will continue to work with our allies and partners to pressure the Taliban to repeal their discriminatory decrees and to ensure that any significant steps toward normalization are conditioned on fundamental improvements in their treatment of women and girls, but not limited to the return of girls to school and the lifting of restrictions on women's employment."

He also explained the removal of the US special envoy for Afghanistan post, stating that all the activities of this post will be carried out by the chargé d'affaires of the US embassy to Afghanistan and the special envoy for women and human rights, and that policy priorities will remain unchanged.

Regarding the threat of al-Qaeda in Afghanistan, Miller emphasized that the US's primary interest in Afghanistan has been and will continue to be to ensure that the country is never used as a launchpad for terrorist attacks against the United States. He added that the US will remain incredibly vigilant against any terrorist threats to the United States and its allies.