Oslo (AFP) - In their first visit to Europe since returning to power, the Taliban began landmark talks with Western diplomats in Oslo on Monday to discuss the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan.
The international community has however insisted the Taliban must respect human rights before aid can resume to the country.
The Taliban delegation, headed by Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, began talks just after 0930 GMT with 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.
Afghanistan's humanitarian situation has deteriorated drastically since last August when the fundamentalists stormed back to power 20 years after being toppled.
International aid came to a halt, worsening the plight of millions of people already suffering from hunger after several severe droughts.
Thomas West, the US special representative for Afghanistan, tweeted on Sunday: "As we seek to address humanitarian crisis together with allies, partners, and relief orgs, we will continue clear-eyed diplomacy with the Taliban regarding our concerns and our abiding interest in a stable, rights-respecting and inclusive Afghanistan."
No country has yet recognised the Taliban government.
Norway has stressed that the talks, which have been criticised by some experts and members of the Afghan diaspora, would "not represent a legitimisation or recognition of the Taliban".
"But we must talk to the de facto authorities in the country.We cannot allow the political situation to lead to an even worse humanitarian disaster," Norwegian Foreign Minister Anniken Huitfeldt stressed last week.
Meanwhile, the Taliban hope the talks will help "transform the atmosphere of war...into a peaceful situation", government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told AFP on Saturday.
Since August, international aid, which financed around 80 percent of the Afghan budget, has been suspended and the United States has frozen $9.5 billion in assets in the Afghan central bank.
Unemployment has skyrocketed and civil servants' salaries have not been paid for months in the country, already ravaged by several severe droughts.
Hunger now threatens 23 million Afghans, or 55 percent of the population, according to the United Nations, which says it needs $4.4 billion from donor countries this year to address the humanitarian crisis.
'Icebreaker'
The international community is waiting to see how the Taliban intend to govern after being accused of trampling on human rights during their first stint in power between 1996 and 2001.
While the Islamists claim to have modernised, women are still largely excluded from public-sector employment and most secondary schools for girls remain closed.
Two women activists disappeared this week in Kabul.
On Sunday, during the first day of the three-day visit to Oslo, the Taliban met with Afghan civil society members, including women activists and journalists, for talks on human rights.
One of those attending the meetings, women's rights activist Jamila Afghani, told AFP "it was a positive icebreaking meeting."
The Taliban "displayed goodwill....Let's see what their actions will be, based on their words," she said.
Meanwhile, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a tweet: "All Afghans need to work together for better political, economic and security outcomes".
"The participants...recognised that understanding and joint cooperation are the only solutions."
The 15 members of the all-male delegation arrived on Saturday aboard a plane chartered by the Norwegian government.
Among them was Anas Haqqani, a leader of the most feared and violent faction of the Taliban movement –- the Haqqani network, responsible for some of the most devastating attacks in Afghanistan.
His participation has been heavily criticised on social media.
According to Norwegian media, a Norwegian-Afghan has filed a police complaint in Oslo against Haqqani for war crimes.
"This hurts.It's as if Anders Behring Breivik (the Norwegian rightwing extremist who killed 77 people in 2011) came to a country" as a delegate, Zahir Athari told public broadcaster NRK.
