UAE to run Kabul airport in new deal with Taliban

DUBAI/KABUL, July 8: The Afghan Taliban and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are ready to strike a new deal for the Gulf nation to run Kabul airport and several others in Afghanistan that could be announced within weeks.
According to the details, the Taliban have courted regional powers, including Qatar and Turkey, to operate Kabul airport, landlocked Afghanistan’s main air link with the world, and others. But after months of back-and-forth talks and at one point raising the possibility of a joint UAE-Turkey-Qatar deal, the Taliban is set to hand the operations in their entirety to the UAE, which had previously run Afghan airports.
Under the deal with the UAE, Afghans will be employed at the airports, including in security roles, crucial for the Taliban who want to show they can create jobs but also because they staunchly oppose the presence of foreign forces.
The militants in May awarded the ground services contract to UAE state-linked GAAC, which was involved in running security and ground handling services at Afghan airports before the Taliban takeover, shortly after Taliban officials had visited Abu Dhabi.
Meanwhile, Qatar and Turkey’s joint negotiations with the Taliban broke down around the same time, sources said. A Taliban transport ministry spokesman confirmed an aviation security contract had already been signed with the UAE but said the air traffic contract was not finalised or confirmed yet. -DNA