Spokesman Stephen Dujarric says UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres received a letter requesting “participation” during the summit in New York.
The letter came from the Taliban-appointed Amerkan Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and was dated Monday, September 20, the day before the UN General Assembly. In the letter, Muthaki was mentioned as the Foreign Minister.
The Islamist group occupied Kabul and occupied Afghanistan on August 15 after ten days of lightning strikes. The last American soldiers left the city shortly before midnight on August 31st.
It is unclear who will be allowed to represent Afghanistan
In the letter, Ambassador Ghulam Issa Chai stated that he “no longer represents Afghanistan” at the UN. But the ambassador of the government ousted by the Taliban was also asked to speak, and the UN has not yet decided who will be allowed to represent Afghanistan in the world body.
A nine-member accreditation panel will decide the case, Dujarric says, but it is unclear if the panel will meet before the end of the summit week. The group includes Russia, China, the United States, Sweden, South Africa, Sierra Leone, Chile, Bhutan and the Bahamas.
The Taliban did not mention in a letter to the United Nations whether Mutaki wanted to go to New York to speak, or whether it was a video conference, which many heads of state are doing about the corona epidemic.
Not internationally recognized
The Taliban have appointed Doha spokesman Suhail Shaheen as Afghanistan’s ambassador to the United Nations.
No country has yet recognized the Taliban government, which has fulfilled demands to dedicate itself to respecting human rights, but few have spoken out in favor.
“The practical political view is that it is now a new fact and if you want to ignore it, it is your choice,” Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said on Monday.
“Music geek. Coffee lover. Devoted food scholar. Web buff. Passionate internet guru.”
