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Afghanistan
This Week in AsiaPolitics

Taliban talks to Malaysia, Indonesia, other far-off Muslim-majority nations, ‘to create engagement perception’, say analysts

  • Group, which returned to power in Afghanistan last year, has not been officially recognised by any government but seeks international recognition
  • However, Taliban diplomats have already been accepted in several nations, including Pakistan and Iran, both Muslim, and Russia and China

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A Taliban fighter keeps a watch in Afghanistan’s Panjshir Province earlier this month. Photo: AFP
Amy Chew

The Taliban is reaching out to Muslim-majority nations far from Afghanistan, like Malaysia and Indonesia, to create the perception that an increasing number of countries are interested in engaging with the regime to “strengthen their case for international recognition”, say analysts.

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On Sunday, the Taliban’s acting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi met Malaysia’s special adviser on Afghanistan, Ahmad Azam Abdul Rahman, to discuss banking, education, bilateral cooperation and scholarships for Afghan students, said the Kabul-based Tolo news channel.

On the same day, the Taliban’s Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani, wanted by the FBI for questioning in relation to a 2008 attack on a Kabul hotel that killed six people, called on the global community to recognise its legitimacy as the official government in the country.

Malaysia’s foreign ministry was approached for a comment about the recent visit to Afghanistan. In February, Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah said a humanitarian mission to Kabul was not to recognise the Taliban but to ensure Afghans were helped.

Last year, Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi met Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, deputy director of the Taliban’s political office, in Qatar’s capital, Doha, and stressed the importance of an inclusive government in Afghanistan and respect for women’s rights.

Muslim women at Malaysia’s Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin Mosque this month. In Afghanistan, in comparison, the Taliban have ordered all women to cover their faces in public. Photo: dpa
Muslim women at Malaysia’s Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin Mosque this month. In Afghanistan, in comparison, the Taliban have ordered all women to cover their faces in public. Photo: dpa
Amid such meetings, analysts say the Taliban administration is becoming frustrated it is still unrecognised by any world government since returning to power almost a year ago, although its diplomats have been accepted in several nations, including China.
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