DOHA: United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday said international envoys to Afghanistan hope for Taliban participation at their future meetings after the authorities snubbed an invitation to talks in Doha.

Guterres told a news conference that delegates had discussed “creating the conditions, in a next meeting, to have the presence of the de facto authorities of Afghanistan,” following their refusal to join the two-day conference which ended on Monday in the Gulf state.

The Taliban’s administration in Kabul has not been officially recognised by any other government since it took power and imposed a strict interpretation of Islam, with women subjected to laws characterised by the UN as “gender apartheid”.

In the aftermath of the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, the international community has wrestled with its approach to the country’s new rulers.

The UN had extended an invitation for Taliban authorities to participate, following their exclusion from the first meeting in May.