The fourth Vienna meeting, attended by 70 political, cultural, and media figures, has elicited mixed reactions. Some political figures criticized the remarks made by some speakers on the first day of the meeting, while others, including the Taliban, labeled the participants as a “confused bunch.” Some former officials described the position of “Turkic people” in the Taliban regime as “better” than at this meeting, and some women criticized the absence of any women in the front row. Meanwhile, some citizens, reacting to comments from a Taliban official, questioned why the group is afraid of what they call a “confused bunch.” On the second day, participants were divided into four committees to discuss Afghanistan’s political outlook, international relations (regional and beyond), human rights situation, and the roadmap for Afghanistan’s future economy.
The Austrian Institute for International Affairs (OIIP) hosted the three-day meeting for the fourth time, bringing together political, military, civil, and cultural figures opposing the Taliban. Seventy political and civil figures from 40 social, political, and media organizations attended the meeting to discuss “a democratic future for Afghanistan.”
On the first day, Mohammad Mohaqiq, a member of the Leadership Circle of the National Resistance Council for the Salvation of Afghanistan, described Sirajuddin Haqqani, the Taliban’s Minister of Interior, as a “man of war and peace.” According to him, despite conducting and ordering suicide attacks over the past 20 years, Haqqani has shown interest in “intra-Afghan negotiations.”
Ahmad Massoud, the leader of the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan, emphasized in his speech that the Taliban do not represent any ethnic group or language in Afghanistan. According to him, the Taliban are “an external intelligence concept, not belonging to the people of Afghanistan.”
These remarks sparked widespread reactions among politicians and social media users. Some users accused most participants, who previously held high positions in the government, of incompetence and lack of planning.
Latif Pedram, the leader of the National Congress Party of Afghanistan, referred to the Vienna meeting as the “Vienna Feast.” Without naming Mohammad Mohaqiq and Ahmad Massoud, he criticized their remarks.
On his Facebook page, Mr. Pedram wrote: “The fourth Vienna feast praised Sirajuddin Haqqani as a man of war who is also a man of peace. At the same time, it was stated that the Taliban do not belong to a specific ethnic group or language. This means that the Taliban are a national and an all-inclusive movement.”
The leader of the National Congress Party of Afghanistan used Mr. Massoud’s catchphrase sarcastically, writing: “In a way, knowingly or unknowingly, a campaign in favor of the Taliban’s ethnocentric and medieval regime took place on the eve of the Doha meetings.”
On the other hand, Sayed Anwar Sadat, the former Minister of Labor and Social Affairs of the previous government of Afghanistan, criticized the ethnic composition of the Vienna meeting and attributed it to the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan. He wrote: “The position the current regime in Afghanistan has assigned to the Turkic people is much better than the position the National Resistance Front assigned to them in the Vienna meeting.”
Meanwhile, Abdullah Rahimi, one of the participants, responded to Mr. Sadat, stating that Dr. Aliya Yilmaz, who is from the Turkic community of Afghanistan, chaired the meeting, holding the highest position in this “gathering.” He mentioned representatives from the Islamic Society and the Islamic Movement who chaired the political committee of the fourth Vienna meeting.
He also accused Mr. Sadat of being uninformed and collaborating with the Taliban. He wrote: “You are unaware of the essence of the issues and the positions taken, relying on reports from a few negative-minded individuals. I know, Mr. Sadat, you must criticize anti-Taliban figures’ meetings because you are in collaboration with the Taliban.”
Some Taliban figures have also reacted to the Vienna meeting. Zaker Jalali, head of the Third Political Department of the Taliban’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, referred to the participants of the Vienna meeting as a “confused bunch.” He claimed that the members of this meeting are looking to foreigners for support and are destined to fail. He further accused the participants of poor understanding of international politics and stated that they have no buyers in the political market.
Hamidullah, a student, views the Vienna meeting as a positive step towards unity and strengthening the anti-Taliban forces. He says that despite the “ridiculous” remarks made by the Taliban on this matter, the group is terrified of gatherings of their opponents anywhere in the world.
This student said: “The Taliban are afraid of any small voice and protest. They are terrified by a large gathering of politicians in Europe discussing Afghanistan’s democratic future because they lack both internal and international legitimacy, and these forces, despite their past, have now become a voice for the people of Afghanistan.”
These criticisms come as the Vienna meeting concluded its second working day yesterday, discussing “a democratic Afghanistan.” Participants were divided into four committees to discuss Afghanistan’s political outlook, international relations (regional and beyond), the human rights situation, and the roadmap for Afghanistan’s future economy.
However, Fazl Ahmad Manawi, one of the participants, described the ethnic, party, intellectual, and religious diversity of the attendees as encouraging. He wrote on his X (formerly Twitter) page: “The ethnic, party, intellectual, and religious diversity among the participants of the fourth Vienna meeting was encouraging towards a single goal: the liberation of Afghanistan from oppression and ignorance. With each passing day and meeting, we witness greater solidarity on the path to freedom for our country. This aspiration increases hope for a brighter future.”
Some social media users criticized the published images of the Vienna meeting, noting that not a single woman was present in the front row. Others regarded the meeting as significant and valuable. They said that holding the Vienna meeting just before the third Doha meeting is a timely action for a unified response from the Taliban opponents to the one-sided engagement of the United Nations with the Taliban.
Previously, several human rights organizations had severely criticized the exclusion of women and civil forces opposed to the Taliban from the Doha meeting. According to them, this action is an indirect submission to the Taliban, and the United Nations and its member countries have committed a “strategic mistake.”
Meanwhile, some media outlets reported, citing the U.S. Department of State, that the U.S. special representatives for Afghanistan have not yet decided whether to participate in the Doha meeting.
You can read the Persian version of this daily report here:
واکنشها به چهارمین نشست ویانا؛ طالبان چرا از «جمع سرگردان» میترسند؟ | روزنامه ۸صبح