VOA慢速英语--美国和国际社会密切关注塔利班临时政府

The United States says it is considering the Taliban's announcement of a caretaker government in Afghanistan, saying it believes the Afghan people should have "an inclusive government."

A State Department spokesperson told VOA Tuesday, "We will continue to hold the Taliban to their commitments to allow safe passage for foreign nationals and Afghans with travel documents."

The statement repeated the U.S. desire that "the Taliban ensure that Afghan soil is not used to threaten any other countries." The U.S. also expects the Taliban to allow humanitarian¹ aid for the Afghan people. "The world is watching closely," the statement said.

The Taliban announced Tuesday a caretaker Islamic government, saying it will be headed by Mullah Hasan Akhund. He worked closely with the Islamist movement's late founder² Mullah Omar.

The announcement came a day after the Taliban said they had won control over the northern province of Panjshir. The province was the only area in Afghanistan that used armed resistance against the Taliban.

Taliban chief spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said that all the appointments were temporary. He added that the heads of various other ministries³ will be appointed soon.

Akhund comes from the southern Afghan area of Kandahar, the birthplace of the Taliban. He led a group that often attacked the United States and allied⁴ forces during 20 years of war.

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar is head of the group's political office. He will serve as the deputy prime minister in the caretaker government. The interior minister will be Sirajuddin Haqqani, head of the Haqqani network. The U.S. has named the Haqqani network as an international terrorist organization, offering a $10 million reward for information that leads to Haqqani's arrest. He is accused of directing deadly attacks against American and allied forces in Afghanistan.

Amir Khan Muttaqi will be the foreign minister and Mohammad Yaqoob, son of Mullah Mohammad Omar, will be the acting⁵ defense⁶ minister, Mujahid added.

Ahmadullah Wasiq is a senior member of the Taliban information ministry⁷. He told reporters that the rarely-seen Taliban chief Hibatullah Akhundzada will be the "amir" (supreme leader) of the government, or the "Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan."

The Taliban have since told Afghans and foreign countries that they will appoint an "inclusive government" in the country. They say they will not bring back the severe Islamist rule of the 1990s. That government had a violent justice system and banned women and girls from public life. So far, the caretaker government is made up of all-male, Taliban members.

Recognition "A long way off"

On Monday, a reporter asked U.S. President Joe Biden whether his administration would recognize the Taliban.

"No. That's a long way off," Biden said.

On Tuesday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki repeated that there was no hurry to recognize the Taliban government.

"It is really going to be dependent on what steps the Taliban takes. They will be watching, the United States included, they will be watching whether they allow for American citizens and citizens of other countries to depart, whether they allow individuals who want to leave the country to leave ... how they treat women and girls around the country."

The U.S. and the international community have urged the Taliban to ensure protection of human rights and cut ties with al-Qaida terrorists. They are also demanding representation of all Afghan ethnic⁸ groups in the government if it wants to remain part of the international community.

China hopes order will be restored

Wang Wenbin is China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson. He said the formation of the Taliban government is important because it will restore social and economic order as soon as possible.

"We hope Afghanistan will establish a broadly based and inclusive political structure," and follow moderate domestic and foreign policies while opposing terrorist forces and living on friendly terms with other countries, Wang added.

The United Nations reacted to the Taliban's announcement by saying only a negotiated and inclusive settlement will bring long-lasting peace to Afghanistan.

U.N. spokesperson Farhan Haq said in New York that the U.N. is still working toward a peaceful solution. The U.N. wants to help "promote the human rights of all Afghans, notably⁹ women and girls, promote sustainable development in line with agenda 2030, and provide lifesaving humanitarian assistance and critical support to civilians¹⁰ in need."

Michael Kugelman is deputy Asia program director at the Wilson Center. He noted¹¹ that Taliban leaders have been appointed to all important positions. "It's not at all inclusive, and that's no surprise," Kugelman said in social media.

At least 10 people in the 33-member Taliban Cabinet announced Tuesday were part of the group's team that negotiated the February 2020 peace agreement with the U.S. That led to all foreign forces leaving after nearly 20 years of war in Afghanistan.

Words in This Story

commitment – n. a promise to do or give something

ensure – v. to make (something) sure, certain, or safe

promote – v. to help (something) happen, develop, or increase

sustainable – adj. able to last or continue for a long time

1 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

2 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

3 ministries   

（政府的）部( ministry的名词复数 )； 神职； 牧师职位； 神职任期

参考例句：

• Local authorities must refer everything to the central ministries. 地方管理机构应请示中央主管部门。
• The number of Ministries has been pared down by a third. 部委的数量已经减少了1/3。

4 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

5 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

6 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

7 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

8 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

9 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。

10 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

11 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。