BERLIN: The Taliban would welcome German investment in Afghanistan and help in areas including humanitarian aid, health care, education and infrastructure, the group's spokesman told Bild newspaper.

The Taliban took power in Afghanistan last month as foreign forces pulled out after a 20-year mission, and the country is facing an economic collapse and humanitarian crisis while donors and governments weigh up how to deal with the new leaders.

Germany, acting in concert with the European Union, has laid out conditions to resume a diplomatic presence in Kabul and unfreeze development aid, urging the Taliban to respect human rights, particularly those of women.

"The German government could encourage its entrepreneurs to come and invest in our country," Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in an interview with Bild published on Monday.

The Taliban would pave the way for investments and ensure companies' security, he said.

Germany maintained close relations with Afghanistan in the past and after the fall of the first Taliban government in 2001 hosted a conference in Bonn that was supposed to lay the foundation for a democratic Afghanistan.

The hardline Islamist group has sought to present a more moderate face this time.

"We would like to revive the friendly atmosphere that existed between Afghans and Germans.