Russia’s Special Presidential Representative for Afghanistan, Kabulov, confirmed on the 3rd that Russia has officially recognized Afghanistan’s interim government.
Kabulov made the remarks in response to a question from RIA Novosti.
Since the Taliban regained power in August 2021, the Afghan interim government has been seeking formal recognition from the international community. Russia is the first country to officially recognize the Afghan interim government.
On the 3rd, Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also said in a statement that Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Rudenko had accepted the credential copies from the new Afghan ambassador to Russia, Hassan.
Earlier the same day, Afghanistan’s interim government’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement noting that Russian Ambassador to Afghanistan Zhirnov met with Afghanistan’s acting Foreign Minister Muttaqi and formally informed him of Russia’s decision to recognize the legitimacy of Afghanistan’s interim government.
The statement quoted Zhirnov as saying that this decision by Russia will further deepen Russia-Afghanistan relations and expand cooperation in various fields.
Muttaqi welcomed Russia’s decision.
He said this marks a “new phase of positive, mutually respectful, and constructive engagement” between the two countries. Russia’s “pragmatic and principled” decision will become an important milestone in bilateral relations.