The foreign ministers of Iran, Russia, China, and Pakistan gathered on 13 April for four-way talks in the Uzbek city of Samarkand. The meeting took place on the sidelines of the fourth regional gathering of Afghanistan's neighbors. The ministers discussed a wide range of issues regarding Afghanistan, including a recent surge in extremist activity, problems caused by US sanctions, poor living conditions for Afghan people, and the flow of Afghan refugees into neighboring countries.
During their discussions about stabilizing humanitarian and socio-economic conditions in Afghanistan, one focus was on developing regional economic integration. They also considered implementing transport and energy projects with Kabul's participation. An anonymous White House official acknowledged that they should have sounded the alarm earlier about risks associated with Afghanistan's government collapsing as warfare came to an end. This person partially blamed President Trump for not preparing adequately before initiating a chaotic U.S withdrawal.
An analyst from Afghanistan criticized China's concentration on trade deals and anti-terror work while condemning US sanctions imposed after Taliban forces seized control over Kabul in August 2021 during America’s military departure from the country. They mentioned that China "welcomes Afghanistan's participation in Belt and Road cooperation" aimed at transforming landlocked nation into a "land-linked country."
While Taliban representatives have expressed interest in joining this initiative – also known as Beijing’s “New Silk Road” global infrastructure plan – there are no signed contracts between both parties yet; three out of eleven points listed within negotiation documents were connected directly to counterterrorism activities involving Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (Pakistani Taliban) which has increasingly targeted Chinese interests.
Qin Gang, Chinese Foreign Minister held meetings with his counterparts from six other nations bordering Afghanistan during his visit to Samarkand. These diplomatic efforts underscored each participating country’s commitment towards ensuring stability within region while addressing various concerns relating specifically toward evolving situation inside war-torn neighbor Afghanistan.