A Taliban spokesperson has praised Beijing for its role in Afghan politics during an interview with Chinese state media. “[The Chinese regime] conducts a very important role in the transaction of Afghanistan, and also in peace reconciliation,” Suhail Shaheen, the Taliban spokesman in Qatar,  told Chinese state-run CGTV in English on Thursday. “[Beijing] has appointed a special envoy to Afghanistan, with whom we had regular contacts,” he said. Shaheen said that the Taliban and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) had long been in contact. “Of course, we  have had different visits to China … [The Chinese regime] conducted a very important role in the transaction of Afghanistan [from the democratic Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the theocratic Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan],” he said. Shaheen also revealed that Beijing had appointed a new official as a contact person with the Taliban. “We have contact with him. Recently, our delegation had a meeting with …