Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities are expanding diplomatic contacts with regional and international powers five years after seizing power, even as the United Nations and rights campaigners continue to document systematic abuses.
India, Qatar, China, Iran and several Central Asian states have recently welcomed Taliban officials or opened new communication channels. Russia recognised the Taliban government just over a year ago and signed a military cooperation agreement last month.
Engagement is growing across the region
The Taliban’s outreach has included hosting envoys in Kabul from China, Japan, Turkey and Saudi Arabia. Officials from Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan have visited Kabul or other Afghan cities this year, seeking trade routes and pipeline projects that could connect the landlocked states with seaports or other countries.
India has also moved to rebuild relations that deteriorated after the fall of Kabul in 2021. New Delhi obtained a sanctions waiver last year allowing Taliban foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi to travel to India, while India’s UN envoy called in June for a rethink of sanctions including travel bans, asset freezes and arms embargoes.
Related coverage: Five years of Taliban rule leave Afghanistan facing overlapping crises.
Western contacts are being framed as practical
In June, the European Union held talks in Brussels with a Taliban delegation about returning failed asylum-seekers to Afghanistan. The European Commission described the meeting as technical, but a Taliban spokesperson called it a historic visit and a step towards regularising consular relations with EU countries.
Britain says it follows a policy of limited and pragmatic engagement, mainly through the UK Mission to Afghanistan based at the British embassy in Qatar. Other western countries have also held discreet meetings with Taliban officials in Qatar, while Taliban authorities now control key consulates in Germany and at least four other western European capitals.
Campaigners fear pressure on rights is fragmenting
The United Nations has described a cascade of Taliban edicts and laws that bar women from universities and most employment, deny teenage girls education and impose strict dress codes. The source material also says minorities have been persecuted and that activists and journalists face repression. More recent laws designate many religious minorities, including Shia Muslims, as heretics and impose strict punishments for dissent.
Fereshta Abbasi, an Afghanistan researcher at Human Rights Watch, said engagement is needed in part so aid agencies can address the humanitarian crisis, but warned that countries need a consistent message linking diplomatic concessions to real progress on women’s rights and human rights. She said that message is not currently being delivered consistently.
Security, trade and influence are driving contacts
The expanding engagement reflects regional security concerns, western pressure to reduce illegal immigration and the view that the Taliban are unlikely to be removed from power in the foreseeable future. Taliban officials are also pursuing cross-border infrastructure projects and have expanded mining, attracting firms from China and elsewhere.
Russia’s closer relationship with Kabul reflects a desire for allies and influence in a strategically important area, according to Anna Borshchevskaya of The Washington Institute. China has welcomed Taliban officials because of concerns about Islamic militancy near its south-western borders and has hosted talks between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
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