Russia hands over Afghan embassy in Moscow to the Taliban, Islamic flag is raised

Russia’s move gives legitimacy to the Taliban, but India’s Rakesh Sood is correct that the most important endorsement the Taliban needs is from the West, since it wants Western money. But Sood observes that “their actions on girls’ education have further restricted that option.”

It isn’t only girls’ education that’s the problem. The Taliban has always been and will always be a brutal jihad group which abuses women and minorities, launches indiscriminate attacks on civilians, and murders those whom it believes to have violated various Sharia provisions. Its objective is to rule the region by Sharia, using fear and force.

“Afghan embassy in Moscow handed over to Taliban, flag hoisted,” by Nayanima Basu, The Print, April 10, 2022:

New Delhi: In the midst of constricting sanctions and increasing isolation by the West for its invasion of Ukraine, Russia on Saturday completed the official handover of the Afghanistan embassy in Moscow to the Taliban. Jamal Garwal who was accredited in late March 2022 as Charge d’Affaires in Afghanistan Embassy in Moscow took charge and the Islamist group’s flag was hoisted inside the mission premises.

“Today, the Afghan Embassy in Moscow was handed over to an IEA-appointed diplomat. The MoFA (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) of IEA (Islamic Emirates Arabic) expresses gratitude to the government of the Russian Federation for accrediting the Afghan diplomat and facilitating the role of the Afghan Embassy in ensuring bilateral relations and providing timely services to its citizens in Russia”, said Abdul Qahar Balkhi, spokesperson, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Afghanistan.

Balkhi also said, “As the legitimate government of Afghanistan, the IEA is entitled to managing Afghan political missions abroad and engaging responsibly with the world.”…

“We do not rule out that Kabul may send several junior and middle-level diplomats to reinforce the staff of the Afghan embassy in Moscow. Some of its diplomats, as we have heard, have already quit their jobs and even left Russia,” Kabulov said….

“We are convinced that the international community should actively cooperate with Afghanistan’s new government, encouraging steps aimed at its official recognition by the UN and all its participants,” Lavrov said in that meeting which was attended by Taliban’s acting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi….

While Moscow has officially accredited that Taliban diplomat, Russia’s Foreign Ministry has said this cannot be considered as “official recognition” of the regime.

“It would be premature to talk about recognising the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. However, I must note that the regime change in Kabul has not signalled any pause in the diplomatic contacts between our countries. We had contact with the Taliban movement even before it came to power. It is business as usual for the Russian Embassy in Afghanistan, while the members of the Afghan diplomatic mission in Moscow were appointed by the previous government,” Maria Zakharova, spokesperson, Russian Foreign Ministry said last week….

However, according to Rakesh Sood, former Indian envoy to Afghanistan, the Taliban will have to ultimately “seek recognition from the West as that’s where the money will come from. Their actions on girls’ education have further restricted that option. The timing, however, of the step taken by Russia is only a reflection of its growing differences with the West.”…