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Russia accepted the credentials of a new Afghan ambassador to Moscow on Thursday, making it the first country to extend diplomatic recognition to the Taliban since the Islamist movement retook power in the south Asian country in 2021.
The move, taken after a decision by President Vladimir Putin, “will fuel productive bilateral co-operation between our countries in various fields”, Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
It posted a picture of deputy foreign minister Andrei Rudenko meeting newly appointed Afghan ambassador Gul Hassan Hassan earlier on Thursday. Taliban diplomats later raised the group’s flag — the Muslim declaration of faith in black script on a white background — at the Afghan embassy.
Russia is the first country to formally recognise the Taliban though others including China, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan have accepted the Islamist group’s diplomats, moving those states closer to full diplomatic recognition of the Islamist government.
Putin said last year the Taliban government was “undoubtedly our allies in fighting terrorism” and said the Islamists had given Russia “signals they are ready to work with us on the anti-terrorist track”.
The Taliban, which ousted a western-backed government in Kabul during a chaotic withdrawal of US-led troops from the country in 2021, had been banned in Russia as a terrorist organisation until April this year.
Lifting the ban was the latest of a series of steps paving the way towards recognition following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, when the Taliban called for “restraint on both sides”.
Russia has started exporting commodities to Afghanistan. It also invited Taliban representatives to participate in the St Petersburg economic forum, the Kremlin’s flagship conference, last month.
The foreign ministry said it saw “significant potential to work together on trade and economics with a focus on projects in energy, transport, agriculture, and infrastructure.”
It added that Russia would continue to work with the Taliban on “strengthening regional security and working with the threats of terrorism and drug crime” as well as “deepening ties in education, sport, culture and humanitarian work”.
In posts on X, Afghanistan’s foreign ministry said: “The Russian ambassador officially conveyed the Russian government’s decision to recognise the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan by the Russian Federation.”
It added that the move was a “historic step” which “would set a good example for other countries”.
Moscow’s recognition comes as Germany is trying to strike a deal with the Taliban to facilitate the deportation of Afghan migrants. A formal immigration deal with the Taliban would make Germany the first western government to strike such an agreement.
