Johnson Says UK Will Work with Taliban 'If Necessary'

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Friday Britain would work with the Taliban if necessary after the militants took over Afghanistan.

"What I want to assure people is that our political and diplomatic efforts to find a solution for Afghanistan, working with the Taliban, of course if necessary, will go on," Johnson told media.

Speaking after a COBRA meeting, Johnson dismissed criticism of Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab's summer holiday as Afghanistan's capital Kabul fell to the Taliban.

Asked if he still had confidence in Raab who has faced calls for his resignation from opponents for his response to the crisis, he replied: "Absolutely".

Furthermore, the prime minister emphasized that the current situation in Kabul was "getting slightly better" and there had been a "stabilisation" at the city's airport.

"Yesterday we were able to get out about 1,000 people, today another 1,000 people," he said of the ongoing British evacuation effort.

In the same vein, the British government pointed out that it had secured the evacuation of 1,615 people since Saturday, including 399 British nationals and their dependants, in addition to 320 embassy staff and 402 Afghans.