Afghanistan, Uzbekistan discuss food security cooperation

The international community has scrambled to send humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan as the country still faces a major humanitarian crisis following the Taliban’s takeover. The government of Uzbekistan expressed its intention to resume cooperating with Afghanistan on food security issues.

The Uzbekistan government expressed a desire Wednesday to resume cooperation with Afghanistan on food security. This announcement follows the meeting between Uzbekistan Deputy Prime Minister Sardor Umurzakov and the Taliban-backed Afghan interim government head Mohammad Hassan Akhund in Kabul.

“Further steps have been outlined to resume cooperation to ensure food security, accelerate the resumption of economic activity, and maintain sustainable peace in Afghanistan,” said the Uzbek Ministry of Investments and Foreign Trade in a statement.

Both leaders also discussed the construction projects of the Mazar-i-Sharif-Kabul-Peshawar railway line and the Surkhon-Puli-Khumri power transmission line. The Taliban side thanked Uzbekistan for assisting in the restoration of Kabul airport as well as expressing a preparedness to cooperate in the completion of the projects.

This engagement follows remarks by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres last month, saying that the world cannot abandon Afghanistan now for the sake of the Afghan people and overall global security. Guterres also laid out the action for the insurgent group to follow and called fundamentalists to expand opportunities and security for Afghans, uphold human rights, and demonstrate a commitment to be part of the international community.

Back in January, the UN appealed to raise $4.4 billion in donations to address the food, health, and other needs in Afghanistan.

India has already transported shipments of wheat to Afghanistan in a deal with Pakistan to pass the trucks through the neighboring country. The first convoy made up of 50 trucks carrying emergency food aid from India were allowed to pass through Pakistan to get to Afghanistan.

Indian foreign secretary Harsh Shringla and Afghanistan ambassador to India Farid Mamundzay saw off the convoy that would ship 50,000 metric tons of wheat from the Indian border post of Attari to the border India shares with Pakistan.

The passage of the trucks was also confirmed by the Pakistani commerce ministry, and a World Food Program representative said that the aid would be distributed to Afghanistan through the UN agency.