-Spokesman says China is shocked by and strongly condemns the explosions
BEIJING: China on Friday condemned the deadly attacks by Islamic State suicide bombers outside Kabul airport, saying Afghanistan still faces a “complex and severe” security situation as the United States withdraws.
Two blasts killed at least 85 people including 13 US soldiers near the airport on Thursday, ripping through crowds desperate to flee Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.
China has urged the Afghan Taliban to fulfill its promises, break off with all terrorist organizations, firmly crack down on the East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM), and address obstacles that hinder regional security and development cooperation, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said at the press conference on Friday.
We noticed that for the past 20 years, some terrorist organizations have gathered and developed in Afghanistan, posing a severe threat to international and regional security, especially the ETIM, Zhao said, noting that the ETIM has been listed as a terrorist organization by the Security Council of the United Nations and has posed a direct threat to China’s national security and the Chinese people’s safety.
The Chinese spokesperson said that the Afghan Taliban had clarified to China that it will not allow any forces to harm China through incursions made via Afghanistan and urged it to fulfill promises to break off with all terrorist organizations.
Zhao said China “hopes the relevant parties can take effective measures to ensure a smooth transition of the situation”.
Beijing has said it is ready to deepen “friendly and cooperative” relations with Afghanistan after the Taliban seized power in a lightning offensive amid the chaotic pullout of American troops.
There is a potential resource boom to be had from Afghanistan’s vast copper and lithium mines but experts say the perilous security situation means any immediate commodities rush by Chinese firms is unlikely.
It was the most US troops killed in Afghanistan in a single incident since 30 personnel died when a helicopter was shot down in August 2011.
The deadly blast happened amid the US and other Western countries’ race to evacuate people from Afghanistan before the US military officially ends its 20-year presence in the country on August 31, which is also the red-line that the Afghan Taliban drew for the US and its allies. In recent days, the US and its allies had been informed about the risks of possible attacks targeting Kabul airport.
Videos of the chaos and tragic scenes of blast at the Kabul airport have circulated on social media with international media giving rolling coverage of the incident. Condolences and condemnation poured in from world leaders following the attacks.
Speaking from the White House on Thursday after the deadly blast, Biden said that “I bear responsibility for fundamentally all that’s happened of late” but continued to pivot to former president Donald Trump’s role in striking a deal with the Taliban that set a deadline for American forces to leave the country.
–The Daily Mail-Global Times news exchange item
