The Taliban government follows Pakistan’s move to designate an ambassador to Kabul as tensions between the two countries.
Afghanistan welcomes upgrades in diplomatic relations with Pakistan, indicating ease of tensions among its South Asian neighbours.
Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dal on Friday said the charges stationed in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul were promoted to the rank of ambassador, with Afghanistan’s Taliban government later announcing the representatives of Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad.
In the absence of the ambassador, the charges as the mission chief of the embassy will act as the ambassador’s director.
“This promotion of diplomatic expression between Afghanistan [and] Pakistan paves the way for strengthening bilateral cooperation in multiple territories,” the Afghan Foreign Ministry posted on X on Saturday.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Emirates in Afghanistan welcomes the Pakistani government’s decision to upgrade the level of diplomatic missions in Kabul to the level of ambassadors.
In reciprocity, the Islamic Emirates of Afghanistan will raise pic.twitter.com/zy1s5texar
– Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Afghanistan (@mofa_afg) May 31, 2025
Afghanistan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaki is planning to visit Pakistan “in the next few days,” said Zia Ahmad Takal, a spokesman for the ministry.
Only a few countries, including China, have agreed to host Taliban government ambassadors since returning to power in 2021, and none yet have officially recognized the government.
Pakistan is the fourth country to designate ambassadors for Kabul after China, the United Arab Emirates and Uzbekistan. Russia said last month it would certify its Taliban government ambassador a few days after removing the group’s “terrorist” designation.
Over the past few months, Afghanistan-Pakistan relations have been rock-solid over security concerns and Islamabad’s campaign to expel Afghan refugees.
Islamabad says armed groups launching attacks within Pakistan are using Afghan soil. Kabul has denied the allegations and says that such violence is a domestic problem in Pakistan.
However, Foreign Minister Dal on Friday said relations between the two countries have improved since visiting Kabul last month. Last week he also met Muttaki and their Chinese counterpart Wang Yi at a trilateral meeting in Beijing.
After the meeting, China said it would “continue to help improve Afghanistan-Pakistan relations.”
