Delay in recognition of Afghanistan
The Islamic Emirate took control of Afghanistan on August 15, 2021, after the fall of the Republic. The Republic, which had been on shaky ground for years with the efforts of the United States and Western governments, finally collapsed when the then Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled to Tajikistan and then to Qatar, and the Taliban took control of the government for the second time.
This time, however, they tried to be recognized as a legitimate government by the world. However, this recognition issue has lasted until today without a clear result, causing the countries of the world and the United Nations to set conditions and rules for recognizing the Afghan government.
Although the world’s view of the Taliban government and its way of governance seemed quite promising, and the political, social, and economic relations of the countries indicated acceptance and continuation of work with the Taliban government, in the meantime, with the emergence of long-term and erosive wars and the high costs of these wars, which are being waged mainly with the help of the United States and the West, the issues of the Afghan government have been sidelined in these discussions, and the world’s view of the situation in Afghanistan has become less positive.
The European Union countries consider the conditions for recognition of the Islamic Emirate to be respecting human rights, especially women’s rights. So far, China, Russia, Uzbekistan and Iran have maintained their relations with the Taliban government and are still trying to recognize Afghanistan as an independent and inclusive country.
However, since all countries consider themselves obliged to ensure human rights, if they want to recognize Afghanistan, they will not be the first country to do so until the caretaker government of Afghanistan makes progress in this regard. This has caused all countries to wait for the first country to recognize Afghanistan and for others to follow one by one toward recognizing it.
During this period, the Taliban government has tried to have Afghanistan recognized by the world as a political power. Among them, they have cooperated with some countries in the fight against drugs and ISIS, and they have taken measures within the country such as developing citizenship, launching cultural and social programs, repairing and restoring historical structures, and beautifying cities (building roads, canals, and squares), which is considered a positive step for the United Nations and has caused politicians and governments who were dissatisfied with their first term of government to change their direction and mindset and seek to interact with them.
Now, the Taliban government is only one step away from entering the international community, and if a powerful country like China, which has good trade and diplomatic relations with the Taliban, recognizes the Taliban government, it will be enough for Afghanistan to take a big step towards global legitimacy. Given its geographical proximity to China and Iran, Afghanistan is of utmost importance for US policy in the region. Therefore, the US will finally agree to these negotiations in order to maintain its influence in Afghanistan.
But now, the outbreak of wars and conflicts in various parts of the world, including Russia, Ukraine, Palestine, and Israel, in which the United States and Western countries are undoubtedly involved and are considered part of one side of the war, has caused Western politicians and countries to pay less attention to issues surrounding Afghanistan.
A look at the delay in recognition of Afghanistan and its consequences
The political and military developments of recent years in several countries have also had negative effects on the situation in Afghanistan.
Delay in the process of recognizing Afghanistan: With the start of the war between Russia and Ukraine and the subsequent war between Palestine and Israel, the issue of recognizing Afghanistan was not only removed from the headlines, but also removed from the negotiating table. A war that is still ongoing and may involve other countries as well.
The United States, which is more involved in the situation in Afghanistan than any other country, should also take the lead in recognizing Afghanistan because the collapse of the republic and the establishment of the current Afghan government were the result what the United States and several other countries did there.
Now the recognition of Afghanistan will also begin with the action of the United States, and the world is waiting for such an action from the United States so that after that, countries one after another will take steps in this direction and to interact with the Afghan government.
Changes in political priorities: Afghanistan was slowly approaching global legitimacy, but recent wars, especially the Israeli war against Palestine, slowed down this process. Since Israel is extremely important to the United States and is considered a US military base in the Middle East, with Israel’s entry into the war against Palestine and tensions with Lebanon, the United States changed its priorities regarding the issues of Afghanistan, the most important of which was recognition, and became involved in Israel’s policies in the region, because Western interests are at stake in this war. According to S. Abramov, “Israel does not fight only to defend itself, but also for the vital interests of the West.”
In addition to delaying the recognition of Afghanistan, the recent wars have had other effects inside the country. Including:
- Decrease in humanitarian aid and aid agencies
- Decrease in attention to social harms in society such as insecurity and poverty
- Afghanistan falling out of the target of attention
Currently, every country is seeking to protect its interests, whether the countries that are at war or the countries that are observing these developments. But the optimism is that the politicians of the previous government are negotiating with the Islamic Emirate. Jafar Mahdavi, a former politician, said: “The negotiations with the authorities of the Islamic Emirate, which began a long time ago, have entered promising stages, and God willing, we will witness pleasant and practical results of these talks in the not-too-distant future.”
If these negotiations come to fruition and all Afghans form an inclusive government together, there will be no obstacle to recognition of Afghanistan.
Shafiqa Amiri
