BEIJING: China became the first country on Wednesday to formally name a new ambassador to Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover, after its envoy presented credentials at a ceremony in Kabul.

The Taliban regime has not been officially recognised by any foreign government, and Beijing did not indicate whether Wednesday’s appointment signalled any wider steps towards formal recognition of the Taliban. “This is the normal rotation of China’s ambassador to Afghanistan, and is intended to continue advancing dialogue and cooperation between China and Afghanistan. China’s policy towards Afghanistan is clear and consistent,” China’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

A Taliban administration foreign ministry spokesman said new envoy Zhao Xing was the first ambassador from any country to take up the post since August 2021, when the Taliban took over as US-led foreign forces withdrew after 20 years.

Beijing becomes first country to depute ambassador to Afghanistan since Taliban takeover

Mohammad Hassan Akhund, acting prime minister in the Taliban administration, had accepted the new envoy’s credentials in a ceremony, the Taliban administration’s deputy spokesman, Bilal Karimi, said in a statement.

The Taliban administration spokesperson’s office published photos of a ceremony at Afghanistan’s presidential palace on Wednesday at which the ambassador was received by officials, including Akhund and the acting foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi.

China’s previous ambassador to Afghanistan, Wang Yu, took up the role in 2019 and finished his tenure last month.

There are other diplomats in Kabul with the title of ambassador, but all of them took up their posts before the Taliban takeover.

Other countries and bodies, such as Pakistan and the European Union, have since sent senior diplomats to lead diplomatic missions using the title “charge d’affaires”, which does not require presenting ambassadorial credentials to the host nation.

The Taliban entered the capital on Aug 15, 2021, as the Afghan security forces, set up with years of Western support, disintegrated and US-backed president Ashraf Ghani fled.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2023