The G-7 countries are united on their stand on Taliban, US President Joe Biden said after the group's meeting on Tuesday. He added that the powerful grouping agreed that the legitimacy of any future government in Afghanistan depends on the Taliban's approach to prevent the country from being used as a "base for terrorism”.
The leaders of the G-7 bloc, the UN, NATO and the European Union met virtually on the Afghan crisis. G-7 comprises the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the UK.
“The G-7 leaders and the leaders of the EU, NATO and the UN, all agreed that we will stand united in our approach to the Taliban," Biden told reporters at the White House.
"We agreed that the legitimacy of any future government (in Afghanistan) depends on the approach it (Taliban) now takes to uphold international obligations, including to prevent Afghanistan from being used as a base for terrorism,” he said.
Biden said the G-7 countries have agreed that none of them are going to take the Taliban's word for it.
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“We'll judge them by their actions, and we'll stay in close coordination on any steps that we take moving forward in response to the Taliban's behaviour,” he said.
“At the same time, we renewed our humanitarian commitment to the Afghan people and supported a proposal by the Secretary-General Guterres of the United Nations-led international response with unfettered humanitarian access in Afghanistan,” Biden said.
The G-7 countries also talked about their mutual obligation to support refugees and evacuees currently fleeing Afghanistan, he said, adding that the US will be a leader in these efforts.