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Egypt Independent
5 hours ago
- Business
- Egypt Independent
Russia becomes first nation to recognize Taliban government of Afghanistan since 2021 takeover
CNN — Russia has become the first nation to recognize the Taliban government of Afghanistan since it took power in 2021, announcing on Thursday it has accepted an ambassador from the Islamist group. 'We believe that the act of official recognition of the government of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan will give impetus to the development of productive bilateral cooperation between our countries in various fields,' the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement. 'We see significant prospects for cooperation in the trade and economic area with an emphasis on projects in the fields of energy, transport, agriculture, and infrastructure,' the statement continues. 'We will continue to assist Kabul in strengthening regional security and combating the threats of terrorism and drug-related crime.' The statement by the Russian ministry was accompanied by a photo of the new Afghan ambassador to Russia, Gul Hassan Hassan, handing his credentials to Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko. In a post on X, alongside pictures of Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi meeting with Russian Ambassador to Kabul Dmitry Zhirnov, the Taliban's foreign ministry hailed the decision as positive and important. Thawing ties with the outside world Russia's recognition is historically significant. The former Soviet Union fought a 9-year war in Afghanistan that ended with Moscow withdrawing its troops in 1989 following their defeat by the Afghan mujahideen, some of whom later founded the modern Taliban. In the aftermath of the 2021 US withdrawal from Afghanistan, Russia was one of a few nations to maintain a diplomatic presence in the country. Russia removed its designation of the Taliban as a terrorist group in April 2025. While the Taliban has exchanged ambassadors with China and the United Arab Emirates, and has a long-standing political office in Qatar, those countries do not recognize it as the government of Afghanistan. The lack of recognition has not prevented Afghanistan's new rulers from doing business with the outside world. In 2023, a Chinese oil company signed an oil extraction deal with the Taliban. Moreover, the Taliban has angled for the recognition of another former adversary: the United States. Efforts have reportedly ramped up since US President Donald Trump began his second term earlier this year. March 2025 saw the release of two Americans from Afghanistan, along with the US removing millions of dollars of bounties from three Taliban officials. People familiar with American conversations with the Islamist group told CNN in April that the Taliban has proposed numerous steps toward US recognition, including the creation of an embassy-like office within the US to handle Afghan issues. 'You need to be forthcoming and take a risk,' US officials told the Taliban during a March meeting to secure an American prisoner's release, according to the person familiar with the proceedings. 'Do this, it will likely open up the door for a better relationship.' It wasn't the first time the US had diplomatically engaged with the Taliban. In the last year of his first term, Trump reached an agreement with the group for a full US withdrawal by 2021. The deal achieved a chaotic fulfillment as the Taliban swept to power during former US President Joe Biden's first summer in the White House.
Miami Herald
17 hours ago
- Politics
- Miami Herald
Russia officially recognizes Afghan Taliban government
July 4 (UPI) -- Russia has become the first country to formally recognize the Taliban government in Afghanistan. "We believe that the official recognition of the Government of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan will give an impetus to the development of productive bilateral cooperation between our countries in various areas," the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a media release accompanied by a photo of Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko meeting Afghan ambassador Gul Hassan Hassan in Moscow this week. "We see considerable prospects for interaction in trade and the economy with a focus on projects in energy, transport, agriculture, and infrastructure. We will continue to assist Kabul in strengthening regional security and fighting terrorist threats and drug crime." Afghanistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs also confirmed the recognition on X, with photos. "During this meeting, the Russian Ambassador officially conveyed the Russian government's decision to recognize the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan by the Russian Federation," the ministry said in the post. "The Ambassador highlighted the importance of this decision." The meeting between the two dignitaries took place at the new Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan embassy in Moscow. Last October, Russia formally ended its designation of the Taliban as a terrorist organization but did not at the time officially recognize the Islamic regime. Moscow first added the Taliban to its list of designated terrorist groups in 2003 while the regime supported separatist groups in the Caucasus region governed by Russia. After being chased from power following the U.S. military occupation of Afghanistan in 2001, the Taliban returned to governance in 2021 when President Joe Biden ordered the withdrawal of American troops on the ground. The Taliban quickly regained its hold on the country and began rounding up dissidents and in some cases executing them. Copyright 2025 UPI News Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Yahoo
20 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russia becomes first country to recognise Afghanistan's Taliban regime. Will China follow?
Russia has become the first country in the world to grant official recognition to the Taliban government in Afghanistan, with experts monitoring the situation warning other countries like China could soon follow suit. Russia's foreign ministry announced late on Thursday that it had received official credentials from Gul Hassan Hassan, a newly appointed ambassador from the acting government of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan to Russia. Mr Hassan Hassan met with the Taliban's acting foreign affairs minister Amir Khan Muttaqi. The foreign ministry hailed the official recognition of the Afghan government and said it will allow 'productive bilateral cooperation' between the Taliban and Moscow. 'This brave decision will be an example for others … now that the process of recognition has started, Russia was ahead of everyone,' Mr Muttaqi said after meeting Russian officials. No other country has formally recognised the Taliban government. However, China, the United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan and Pakistan have all designated ambassadors to Kabul, in a step towards recognition. The first photos of the celebrations by the former militants showed them waving the Islamic Emirate's white and black flags and offering prayers in the balcony of the Afghanistan embassy in Moscow. Zabiullah Mujahid, the chief spokesperson of the Taliban government in Afghanistan, welcomed the move and said he hoped more nations will now identify them as the official leader of Afghanistan. 'The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is grateful to Russia for this act. We call on other countries to follow the same path to build a better and stronger relationship of recognition with us,' Mr Mujahid told The Independent. The Taliban stormed to power in Afghanistan in August 2021 after the exit of US and Nato forces and promised a moderate rule in the country. But shortly after taking control, the Taliban banned girls and women from schools above sixth grade, colleges, and workplaces. What followed was stricter and harsher implementation of the Taliban's interpretation of Islamic Sharia law, under which girls and women are still banned from public spaces, salons, national parks and gymnasiums, among other places. The Taliban were shunned on the international stage due to their 'gender apartheid policies' and Western diplomats and officials earlier said the isolation would continue until it changed course on women's rights. Russia removing the 'terrorist' tag from the group and recognising them as the official rulers of Afghanistan is being seen as a major step towards ending that isolation – even though the situation for Afghan women has not changed. Taliban leaders have travelled to Russia and China and held high-level talks with many other countries to build diplomatic ties, all part of an effort to seek international legitimacy. Moscow's decision to upgrade its relationship with the Taliban was made by Russian president Vladimir Putin on advice from foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, said Russia's ambassador to Afghanistan Dmitry Zhirnov. Russia has a complex history with Afghanistan. Soviet troops invaded the country in December 1979 to prop up a Communist government, but became bogged down in a long war against mujahideen fighters armed by the US. Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev pulled his army out in 1989, by which time some 15,000 Soviet soldiers had been killed. Russia has been gradually building relations with the Taliban, which Mr Putin said last year was now an ally in fighting terrorism. Since 2022, Afghanistan has imported gas, oil and wheat from Russia. The Taliban was outlawed by Russia as a terrorist movement in 2003, but the ban was lifted in April this year. Russia sees a need to work with Kabul as it faces a major security threat from Islamist militant groups based in a string of countries from Afghanistan to the Middle East. 'Of course, Moscow seeks to establish closer economic ties with Kabul. Russia is pursuing a number of infrastructure projects, in which Afghanistan could play an important role. For example, Russia is promoting transport corridors that are expected to run through Afghan territory,' said Aleksei Zakharov, fellow with Strategic Studies Programme at New Delhi-based think tank Observer Research Foundation (ORF). But to achieve success in these projects alongside the Taliban, Moscow will first need to get a grip on the security situation in Afghanistan. Several terrorist groups, including Isis's regional outfit Isis-K, have carried out attacks in the country against foreign contingents. 'It's still an open question if Russia can get anything in return for IEA's official recognition,' says Mr Zakharov, suggesting this could prove to be a risky bargain for the Kremlin. 'The Taliban are not in a position to provide any guarantees against future attacks. Their track record on fighting terrorism has been mixed,' he said. In March 2024, gunmen killed 149 people at a concert hall outside Moscow in an attack claimed by Isis. US officials said they had intelligence indicating it was the Afghan branch of the group, Isis-K, that was responsible. The Taliban said it was working to wipe out the presence of Isis in Afghanistan. "As a traditional friendly neighbour of Afghanistan, the Chinese side has always believed that Afghanistan should not be excluded from the international community," Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Friday, after Russia's recognition of the Taliban. "No matter how the internal or external situation changes in Afghanistan, diplomatic relations between China and Afghanistan have never been interrupted," she said. The Taliban's soldiers have been celebrating on social media. 'The next in line to recognise the Islamic Emirate will be all the other members of BRICS, InshaAllah. Cry, enemies!' said a Taliban supporter on X, referring to Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa's coalition. Russia's decision 'would pave a clearer way for China at least to officially recognise the government in Kabul', said Kabir Taneja, deputy director and fellow at Strategic Studies Programme at the ORF in New Delhi. 'Others may still be wary. For Russia, this may have been expedited due to the Ukraine war and the ISKP-led terror attack in Moscow in April 2024.' The Middle East will be a 'little more sceptical', he told The Independent. 'However, it is possible that normalisation of Ahmed Al Sharaa in Syria will pave an easier path more specifically for Arab powers to normalise the Taliban as well,' Mr Taneja said, referring to Syria's president – a former al-Qaeda militant. Senior authorities on Afghanistan, however, continued to warn against the risk of colluding with the Taliban at the expense of Afghanistan's women and girls. David Loyn, author of The Long War and a senior expert on Afghanistan, cautioned: 'There is no plan as to how to move forward to save Afghan women. 'The best thing from this could be if the US and other Western countries sat up and took notice that Russia is cozying up to the Taliban, who harbour al-Qaeda and run a terrorist state,' Mr Loyn told The Independent. 'And we know what happens when Afghanistan is ignored. The consequences were 9/11,' Mr Loyn warned.
CBS News
a day ago
- Business
- CBS News
Russia becomes first country to formally recognize Taliban's rule in Afghanistan as China welcomes the move
Russia has become the first country to formally recognize the Taliban's government in Afghanistan since it seized power in 2021 after Moscow removed the group from its list of outlawed organizations. The Russian Foreign Ministry announced Thursday that it had received credentials from Afghanistan's newly appointed Ambassador Gul Hassan Hassan. The official recognition of the Afghan government will foster "productive bilateral cooperation," the ministry said in a statement. Afghanistan's Foreign Ministry called it a "historic step," and quoted Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi as welcoming the decision as "a good example for other countries." The flag used by the Taliban's interim government is seen over the building of Afghanistan's Embassy after Russia has officially recognized the Taliban government in Afghanistan, in Moscow, Russia on July 04, 2025. Sefa Karacan/Anadolu via Getty Images "We believe Russia's move is a positive message to the rest of the world. … We think some Muslim and regional countries may follow suit," Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid told CBS News. China welcomed Russia's decision Friday. "As a traditional friendly neighbor of Afghanistan, the Chinese side has always believed that Afghanistan should not be excluded from the international community," foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said. "No matter how the internal or external situation changes in Afghanistan, diplomatic relations between China and Afghanistan have never been interrupted," she said. A former senior Taliban official told CBS News' Sami Yousafzai on Friday that while the group's leadership would no doubt welcome the Russian and Chinese backing, there was a recognition that "Russia and China can't financially support us the way the Americans did." During two decades of U.S.-backed governance in Afghanistan, there was a steady flow of billions of dollars into the country, helping pay for everything from police salaries and hospitals to schools and weapons for the military and police. Since the Taliban retook power in the summer of 2021, that financial support from the U.S. and its allies has virtually dried up. "Only America and its allies can bring real relief — if they choose to," the former Taliban official told Yousafzai. "We know that." The Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021 following the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces. Since then, they have sought international recognition while also enforcing their strict interpretation of Islamic law. While no country had formally recognized the Taliban administration until now, the group had engaged in high-level talks with many nations and established some diplomatic ties with countries including China and the United Arab Emirates. Still, the Taliban government has been relatively isolated on the world stage, largely over its restrictions on women. Although the Taliban initially promised a more moderate rule than during their first stint in power from 1996 to 2001, it started to enforce restrictions on women and girls soon after the 2021 takeover. Women are barred from most jobs and public places, including parks, baths and gyms, while girls are banned from education beyond sixth grade. Russian officials have recently been emphasizing the need to engage with the Taliban to help stabilize Afghanistan, and lifted a ban on the Taliban in April. Russia's ambassador to Afghanistan, Dmitry Zhirnov, said in remarks broadcast by state Channel One television that the decision to officially recognize the Taliban government was made by President Vladimir Putin on advice from Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Zhirnov said the decision proves Russia's "sincere striving for the development of full-fledged relations with Afghanistan." On Friday, the Taliban took down the tricolor flag of the republic from the embassy building in Moscow and replaced it with their white flag, prompting reactions from former republic officials. "An authoritarian regime recognizing another" "Russia's recognition of the Taliban marks a turning point. It legitimizes a regime that bans girls from education, enforces public floggings, and shelters UN-sanctioned terrorists," Mariam Solaimankhail, a former member of the Afghanistan parliament during the republic government, wrote on social media. "The move signals that strategic interests will always outweigh human rights and international law." Naseer A. Faiq, the chargé d'affaires of the Afghan Permanent Mission to the United Nations, said, "The recognition of the Taliban by countries that have supported them over the past twenty years is not surprising. But the main question is whether this recognition will have an impact on the political, economic, social, and humanitarian situation in Afghanistan and its people, who are facing poverty, unemployment, and uncertainty, or not? "The answer is clear: this political move is apparently in the interests of the Taliban, but its long-term negative effects on the Afghan people will be much greater." Torek Farhadi, a veteran geopolitical analyst, believes Russia is interested in rare earth minerals in Afghanistan. He said Moscow's recognition of the Taliban makes financial investment possible for Russia's defense industry in the region. "Afghanistan has rare earth mines and deposits and Moscow has the mappings from the Soviet day," Farhadi told CBS News. "Moscow officially recognizes the Taliban, it opens the door for investments as rare earth becomes key to the auto industry and the defense industry. Moscow is interested in this spot before anybody else returns to Afghanistan for such investments." Mohammad Halim Fidai, a former provincial governor and civil society activist in exile in Germany, told CBS News, "By endorsing the Taliban regime, Russia has not only violated international norms but also undermined the global consensus against recognizing a government with a deeply troubling human rights record." "This move risks further marginalizing both Russia and the Taliban on the world stage." "Moreover, it exposes the flawed assumptions by some in the West that the Taliban had reformed and would respect basic rights. Ultimately, this endorsement reflects a broader trend of authoritarian solidarity — an authoritarian regime recognizing another."
Nahar Net
a day ago
- Politics
- Nahar Net
Russia becomes first country to formally recognize Taliban's latest rule in Afghanistan
Russia on Thursday became the first country to formally recognize the Taliban's government in Afghanistan since it seized power in 2021, after Moscow removed the group from its list of outlawed organizations. The Russian Foreign Ministry announced that it had received credentials from Afghanistan's newly appointed Ambassador Gul Hassan Hassan. The official recognition of the Afghan government will foster "productive bilateral cooperation," the ministry said in a statement. Afghanistan's Foreign Ministry called it a historic step, and quoted Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi as welcoming the decision as "a good example for other countries." The Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021 following the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces. Since then, they have sought international recognition while also enforcing their strict interpretation of Islamic law. While no country had formally recognized the Taliban administration until now, the group had engaged in high-level talks with many nations and established some diplomatic ties with countries including China and the United Arab Emirates. Still, the Taliban government has been relatively isolated on the world stage, largely over its restrictions on women. Although the Taliban initially promised a more moderate rule than during their first stint in power from 1996 to 2001, it started to enforce restrictions on women and girls soon after the 2021 takeover. Women are barred from most jobs and public places, including parks, baths and gyms, while girls are banned from education beyond sixth grade. Russian officials have recently been emphasizing the need to engage with the Taliban to help stabilize Afghanistan, and lifted a ban on the Taliban in April. Russia's ambassador to Afghanistan, Dmitry Zhirnov, said in remarks broadcast by state Channel One television that the decision to officially recognize the Taliban government was made by President Vladimir Putin on advice from Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Zhirnov said the decision proves Russia's "sincere striving for the development of full-fledged relations with Afghanistan."
