New York [US]: Patience is running out for many in the international community when it comes to effectively engaging with the Taliban, the UN deputy representative for Afghanistan Markus Potzel, told the Security Council on Tuesday. Despite some positive developments over the past few months, the senior UN envoy for the country said they have been "too few and too slow and the negatives outweigh them".
"I am afraid that patience is running out by many in the international community regarding a strategy of engagement with Afghanistan's Taliban authorities," he said. Potzel drew attention to the ongoing ban on girls' secondary education and growing restrictions on women's rights, as "signals that the Taliban are indifferent to more than 50 per cent of the population" and are willing to risk international isolation.
