Although the Trump administration has had a faint view of the Afghan Taliban in the past, recent oberturas suggest that the White House approach to the regime in Kabul may not be as overwhelming as thought above.
This subtle but obvious change is surprising, because as recently as February, the Republican President of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives, Brian Mast, publicly criticized the State Department already USAID for wasting “tax dollars”, citing, among other things, a subsidy of $ 15 million supposedly that provides condoms to the Taliban.
The indication of the change came from Sebastian Gorka, an attached assistant of President Donald Trump and the director of the counterterrorism, during his comments at an event of the Heritage Foundation last month.
“This sounds strange out of my mouth, but the Taliban have been moderately cooperative anti -terrorist partners because there are certain groups of threats in their country, groups of Muslim threats that also threaten them, and so we are working together,” Gorka told the audience.
Trump’s assistant suggests limited security cooperation, but experts say it is unlikely that the recognition of the Taliban regime is unlikely
“We do not have a complete overlap in threats, but not bad,” he observed, pointing out that it was this perception of threat that sometimes forced “the Taliban … to align their actions with our security goals.”
Mr. Gorka also praised Pakistan, saying that stopping Sharifullah, the terrorist of Is-Khorasan who is currently being judged in the United States for orchestrating the bombing of Abbey Gate of 2021, would not have been possible without the cooperation of Islamabad.
Experts argue that a direct channel from the United States could relieve Pakistan’s operational load as the main duct for help and dialogue with Kabul, but it could also reduce Islamabad’s leverage with Washington and Taliban. At the same time, the potential integration of Afghanistan in the regional networks of Commerce and Energy could financially benefit Pakistan.
According to Shuja Nawaz, a distinguished member in the Atlantic Council, Afghanistan as a tributary of CPEC would be key to developing the tribal districts of Pakistan, while Kabul could gain from being a conduit for the energy of Uzbekistan, the Republic of Kirgyz and Tojikistan.
Hassan Abbas, professor of International Security Studies at Washington National Defense, said Sunrise That US-Taliban contacts have continued silently since the hurried withdrawal of August 2021.
These have been largely driven by a shared concern about the threat raised by IS-Khorasan.
Abbas, who has also written a book about the Taliban resurgence, said: “While these channels do not equal recognition, they reflect a practical convergence in contributing. However, their internal divisions, among those who advocate limited pragmatism and others that cling to rigid control, remain an important obstacle with a significant concentration.”
For Professor Touqir Hussain of the University of Georgetown, the commitment to Kabul is probably a geopolitical power game, since Washington does not want Afghanistan to return to the sphere of Chinese and Russian influence. He pointed out that the United States also needs Kabul’s cooperation to repatriate from around 9,000 Afghans living in the United States under a temporary protected status, as well as repatriation to the United States of Afghan that were left behind, who had cooperated with the Americans and the release of any arrest of the United States.
“But Washington does not want any deep commitment or long term with the Taliban. The strong anti -terrorism interest may be addressed with the agreement on the horizon with Pakistan or the countries of Central Asia,” added Professor Hussain.
The Taliban, he said, were not reluctant to direct the anti -terrorist arrangements with Washington, “hoping that he can lead to recognition.”
The Trump administration “may agree with this cooperation, but may not give much in exchange for the restoration of some help programs,” he added.
For Daniel S. Markey, senior research professor at the School of Advanced International Studies by Johns Hopkins, this limited cooperation against terrorism may not lead to great thaw in relations between the United States and Taliban.
“Mainly because there are many other priorities for Trump administration. But I can’t rule it out, since agreements and flexibility are the president’s characteristics,” Markey said Sunrise.
In the words of Professor Nadeem Hussain of the George Washington University, since the relations between Kabul and Islamabad are tense at this time, the provision of the Talibanos to collaborate with the United States could directly imply the establishment in Islamabad, but it can actually be good for Pakistan in general.
Posted in Dawn, September 1, 2025
