Russia became the first country to officially recognize the government of Afghanistan.

04.07.2025 00:02

Russia's President Vladimir Putin's Special Representative for Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, announced that they officially recognized the Afghan government established after the change of administration on August 15, 2021.

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Russia's Special Representative for Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, made statements regarding Afghanistan to the Russian news agency RIA.

RUSSIA OFFICIALLY RECOGNIZED THE AFGHANISTAN GOVERNMENT

In response to the question of whether Russia has officially recognized the Afghanistan government, Kabulov stated, "Yes, it has recognized."

AMBASSADORS PRESENTED THEIR LETTERS OF CREDENCE

In a written statement from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it was noted that Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko met with Gul Hasan, who was newly appointed to the Afghan Embassy in Moscow. The statement recorded that Hasan delivered copies of his letter of credence to Rudenko.

On the other hand, in a statement from the Afghan interim government's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it was mentioned that Kabul's new ambassador to Moscow, Dimitry Zahirnov, presented his letter of credence to Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi and conveyed that the Russian government had decided to officially recognize the Afghanistan administration.

RUSSIA BECAME THE FIRST COUNTRY TO RECOGNIZE THE TALIBAN GOVERNMENT

With this decision, Russia became the first country to recognize the Afghanistan government established after the change of administration on August 15, 2021. Following the withdrawal of US and NATO military forces from the country in the summer of 2021, the previous government was overthrown, and the Taliban, which gained control across Afghanistan, announced its interim government. During the same period, Western countries closed their diplomatic missions in Afghanistan, and very few embassies continued to operate actively in the capital, Kabul.

TALIBAN WAS REMOVED FROM THE LIST OF TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS

The Taliban was included in the list of terrorist organizations banned by the Russian Supreme Court in 2003. In December 2024, Russian President Vladimir Putin approved a law to remove the Taliban from the terrorist list, and in April, the Russian Federation Supreme Court decided to suspend the ban on the Taliban's activities in the country. The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that a decision had been made to elevate Afghanistan's diplomatic representation in Moscow to embassy level.