SRINAGAR: Russia has officially recognised the Taliban government in Afghanistan, becoming the first country to do so since the group seized power in Kabul nearly four years ago.
On Thursday, the Russian Foreign Ministry accepted the credentials of the Taliban-appointed ambassador to Moscow, formalising diplomatic ties with the administration that took over after the withdrawal of US-led forces in August 2021.
“This act of official recognition will give impetus to the development of productive bilateral cooperation between our countries in various fields,” the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement as quoted by Reuters. The ministry identified areas such as energy, transport, agriculture, and infrastructure as priority sectors for collaboration.
Afghanistan’s Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, welcomed the announcement, calling it a “courageous step” and expressing hope that “it will serve as an example to others,” as reported by BBC News. In a video of his meeting with Russian Ambassador Dmitry Zhirnov, shared on X, Muttaqi added, “Now that the process of recognition has started, Russia was ahead of everyone,” according to Al Jazeera.
Russia’s recognition follows a steady normalisation of ties with the Taliban since 2021. The Taliban, which was declared a terrorist organisation by Russia in 2003, had that designation officially removed in April this year by Russia’s Supreme Court, as noted by Al Jazeera.
Russian President Vladimir Putin had already signalled this shift when he referred to the Taliban as “allies in the fight against terrorism” in July 2024, with a specific focus on combating Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K), the group believed to be behind the deadly March 2024 attack near Moscow that killed 149 people, as reported by Reuters.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov further reinforced the policy pivot in April by stating that “the new authorities in Kabul are a reality” and called for “a pragmatic, not ideologised policy” towards the Taliban, as quoted by Al Jazeera.
Russia has maintained an active diplomatic presence in Afghanistan since 2021. It did not shut its embassy in Kabul during the Taliban takeover and became the first country to sign an international trade deal with the new regime in 2022, agreeing to supply Afghanistan with oil, gas and wheat, according to BBC News.
Taliban delegations have also attended Russia’s flagship St Petersburg Economic Forum in both 2022 and 2024, signalling Moscow’s intent to forge long-term economic ties with the administration in Kabul, Al Jazeera reported.
Russia has even announced plans to use Afghanistan as a transit hub for gas exports to Southeast Asia, reflecting growing strategic ambitions in the region.
However, the Taliban government remains under intense international scrutiny for its treatment of women and girls. Since their return to power, they have banned girls above the age of 12 from attending school and universities, barred women from most jobs, and enforced strict travel and speech restrictions. The group claims to respect women’s rights in accordance with its interpretation of Islamic law, BBC News reported.
The United Nations has described these restrictions as amounting to “gender apartheid” and continues to refer to the Taliban as the “de facto authorities” of Afghanistan, not a recognised government, Al Jazeera noted.
In 2021, the United States froze roughly $9 billion in Afghanistan’s central bank assets and imposed financial sanctions on senior Taliban leaders, leading to near-total isolation of the Afghan banking sector from the global financial system, as reported by Reuters.
Russia’s re-engagement with the Taliban is particularly striking given the historical backdrop. In 1979, Soviet forces invaded Afghanistan to support a faltering Communist regime, igniting a decade-long war that led to the deaths of over 15,000 Soviet troops and significantly contributed to the collapse of the USSR. Ironically, many of the U.S.-backed mujahideen fighters who opposed Soviet troops later became the founding members of the Taliban, Reuters noted.
Despite that bitter legacy, Moscow’s priorities have shifted, and its recognition of the Taliban reflects a calculated realignment aimed at regional stability, counterterrorism cooperation, and economic access.
Whether Russia’s diplomatic gamble will trigger wider international acceptance of the Taliban—or entrench its global isolation—remains uncertain. But for now, Moscow has made its move, and the world is watching.
