UK asks Afghan embassy to shut its doors

LONDON: The United Kingdom government has asked the Afghanistan embassy to shut down its diplomatic mission, it emerged on Sunday.

The decision was communicated to Zalmai Rassoul, Afghanistan’s ambassador to the UK.

In a statement, Mr Rassoul said, “The Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in London is scheduled to officially close and will cease its operations on September 27, 2024, at the official request of the host country.”

“This decision has been made based on the requirements of the host country’s authorities. We thank and appreciate all colleagues, citizens, and related institutions who have sincerely cooperated with the Afghan Embassy in London during this period.”

The closure follows a recent announcement by the interim Afghan Taliban government, declaring that documents issued by 14 embassies — including the one in London — were invalid.

Envoy, other diplomats were appointed by previous Afghan government

These dozen embassies are still operated by diplomats appointed by Afghanistan’s former government, and they refuse to follow orders from the incumbent Taliban regime due to their lack of international recognition.

According to news reports, many of these embassies continued to resist Taliban rule, operating independently and grappling with a lack of financial support.

A report published by the Foreign Policy magazine last year detailed how diplomats working in these missions, many of whom are Western-educated and have spent decades building Afghanistan’s post-2001 institutions, now find themselves marooned in foreign countries, struggling with disillusionment, depression and a sense of abandonment.

Even though they have been in power for three years, the Taliban government in Afghanistan is still not recognised by the international community.

The group’s human rights abuses and links to extremist groups have effectively made its leaders a pariah and cut off the country from the global financial system. Some countries, including Russia, China and Pakistan, have handed embassies in their countries to Taliban-appointed diplomats, but most Western nations, including the United States, have refused to do so.

Published in Dawn, September 9th, 2024