Taliban foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi told the BBC his government now operates more than 40 embassies and consulates worldwide, up from 16 three years ago, as the group marks five years since retaking Kabul on August 15, 2021. The UN still does not recognize the Taliban as Afghanistan's government, and only a handful of states, including Iran and China, treat it as even an interim one.
Muttaqi called the regime 'inclusive' while UN reporting this week documented the near-total exclusion of women from public life and continued activity by groups like ISIS-Khorasan despite Taliban denials. He argued countries owe an explanation for withholding recognition, pointing to Iran as proof that recognition alone doesn't guarantee international acceptance.
The EU and UK continue sending diplomats to Kabul, partly to negotiate deportations of Afghan migrants whose asylum claims were denied, and a Taliban delegation visited Brussels in June for migration talks. Iran, meanwhile, sent its agriculture minister to Kabul this week to discuss trade despite its own sanctions-battered economy.
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