UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed Monday proposed a conference in Afghanistan to discuss recognition of the country’s Taliban government. Speaking to an audience at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs, Mohammed said that the UN is hoping to gather diplomatic envoys in the region in the coming weeks to “have that first meeting of envoys across the board.” From there, Mohammed aims to “find those baby steps to put us back on the pathway to recognition.”

Mohammed said the Taliban “clearly” wants recognition, and she hopes to use international recognition as leverage to confront the group’s human rights abuses. Acknowledging that such diplomatic discussion may not ultimately be successful, she still insisted that discussion is necessary. “We cannot allow that [the Taliban] continue to get worse,” she said. “which is what happens when you don’t engage.”

The Taliban has been seeking international recognition for their government since they took control of Afghanistan in 2021, but they have been unsuccessful due to various human rights violations, especially their attacks on the rights of women and girls. Most recently, they targeted women’s access to the legal system, with JURIST’s Afghanistan correspondent reporting that “women cannot access justice agencies and in most areas their petitions asking for justice cannot not be heard, which will increase the deepening violence against women.”

As a result of the Taliban’s unrecognized status, Afghanistan cannot access many global financial resources, leading to an escalating economic and humanitarian crisis.

Mohammed’s comments come as the UN is saying they must make the “appalling choice” whether to continue their operations in Afghanistan or to withdraw after the Taliban banned their women employees from working in the country.