Afghanistan’s Taliban-led government is working with Huawei Technologies to install a wide-ranging surveillance system across the country in an effort to identify and target insurgents or terrorism activities, according to a person familiar with the discussions.
(Bloomberg) — Afghanistan’s Taliban-led government is working with Huawei Technologies to install a wide-ranging surveillance system across the country in an effort to identify and target insurgents or terrorism activities, according to a person familiar with the discussions.
Representatives of the Shenzhen-headquartered tech company met with Interior Ministry officials on Aug. 14, the person said, and a verbal agreement was reached regarding the contract.
The Interior Ministry initially posted images and details of the meeting on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. In one post, spokesman Mufti Abdul Mateen Qani said the advanced camera system was being considered “in every province of Afghanistan.”
The posts, which were later deleted, included comments from Abdullah Mukhtar, the deputy minister of the ministry. “We are willing to accept projects that are better in terms of quality and price,” he said.
“Reports on this meeting are factually incorrect. No plans or agreements were discussed,” Huawei said in an emailed statement. Spokesmen for the Taliban did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The person familiar with the meeting, who asked not to be identified to discuss the agreement, said the system was largely meant to track down members of ISIS in Afghanistan, as well as other militants.
The local affiliate of the Islamic State of Syria and Iraq is considered to be one of the Taliban’s biggest security threats and responsible for last year’s deadly attack on the Russian embassy in Kabul.
The group also struck a hotel in Afghanistan’s capital often frequented by Chinese nationals, and had threatened to target the Chinese, Indian and Iranian embassies in the country, according to a recent United Nations report.
–With assistance from Gao Yuan.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2023 Bloomberg L.P.