Intel: Qatar to represent US diplomatic interests in Afghanistan
Qatar will act as the formal diplomatic messenger between Afghanistan's Taliban leaders and Washington.
Qatar will formally represent US diplomatic interests in Afghanistan and help facilitate Washington’s engagement with the country’s new Islamist rulers, Secretary of State Blinken announced on Friday.
The tiny Gulf country will act as the “protecting power” for the United States in Afghanistan under an agreement signed Friday in Washington by Blinken and Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.
The United States no longer has a diplomatic presence on the ground in Kabul, and US officials have indicated reopening the now-shuttered embassy is not on the table.
Instead, Qatar will establish a US interests section at its own embassy in Kabul to provide certain consular services, Blinken said in remarks alongside the Qatari foreign minister at the opening of the US-Qatar Strategic Dialogue.
