China’s Special Envoy for Afghanistan Affairs Yue Xiaoyong has said his country not only refrains from interfering in Afghanistan’s internal affairs but also respects the country’s independence and territorial integrity.

In an interview with Beijing International Dialogue Center on Sunday, Yue said China is not seeking to establish a sphere of influence in Afghanistan.

“Afghanistan should become a platform for cooperation among all parties instead of turning into a field for geopolitical competition,” he said.

Expressing concern over the presence of militant groups in Afghanistan and the need for an inclusive government, Yue said: “Before the U.S. presence, one or two terrorist groups were active in Afghanistan, but now there are more than 20 terrorist groups operating in the country.”

The Chinese envoy also addressed the situation of women and human rights, stating: “The issue of women is only a small part of Afghanistan’s problems and is not the root cause of its challenges. Furthermore, addressing poverty, hunger, and famine is essential to ensuring human rights.”

In the past three years, U.S. officials have repeatedly expressed concerns about China’s influence in Afghanistan. Similarly, Donald Trump, during his election campaigns, repeatedly claimed that the Bagram airbase had fallen into China’s hands.

Yue meanwhile also criticized Western countries for what he called "double standards" and said: "In order to ensure human rights, the issue of poverty, hunger and famine in Afghanistan must be addressed."

Yue also announced that he is negotiating with the Islamic Emirate to provide humanitarian aid of 1 billion yuan ($138 million) from China.

He said that part of this aid will go to Afghanistan, as well as Pakistan and Iran, so that an arrangement can be made for the return of migrants to their country.

Saudi Arabia has executed 101 foreign nationals this year, including three Afghan citizens. 

AFP reported that 21 Pakistanis, 20 Yemenis, 14 Syrians, 10 Nigerians, nine Egyptians, eight Jordanians, seven Ethiopians, three Sudanese, three Indians, three Afghans and one Sri Lankan, one Eritrean and one Filipino. 

The European-Saudi Human Rights Organization in Berlin condemned the executions and said this was three times higher then last year. 

The organization’s legal director stated: “This is the largest number of foreign nationals executed in a single year. Saudi Arabia has never executed 100 foreign nationals in one year before.”

Amnesty International meanwhile stated that Saudi Arabia was the third highest country for the number of executions in 2023, after China and Iran.

Canada's border guards sent 19 rejected Afghan asylum seekers back to the country last year despite Otawa’s Temporary Suspension of Removals (TSR) that has been in place for Afghan nationals since 1994.

CBC reported that none of the 19 Afghans had their cases rejected on the basis of safety or security risks. The border service did not however reveal further details.

The border agency said a TSR is meant to "halt removals to a country or place when general conditions, such as armed conflict or an environmental disaster, pose a risk to the entire civilian population."

It also said individuals who were found inadmissible "on grounds of criminality, serious criminality, international or human rights violations, organized crime, or security" can be removed despite a TSR, CBC reported.

The CBSA said the 19 who failed their refugee claims left Canada "voluntarily," and that the Afghans were "aware that they benefit from a stay of removal due to the Temporary Suspension of Removal on Afghanistan but requested to have their removal order enforced despite the legislative stay.

"In other words, the individual was advised that they can remain in Canada until the TSR is lifted and they opted to return to Afghanistan."

Canada has welcomed some 54,000 Afghans since August 2021, surpassing a commitment it made to bring in 40,000 in 2021.