KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – The Taliban says it will raise the status of its diplomatic mission in Islamabad from chargé d’affaires to ambassador, following a similar announcement by Pakistan.
In a statement on Saturday, the Taliban’s foreign ministry welcomed Pakistan’s decision to upgrade its mission in Kabul. It called its own move a “reciprocal” step aimed at strengthening ties.
The ministry added that the upgrade would pave the way for closer cooperation in areas such as trade, security, and the economy.
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar announced the decision to raise the status of Islamabad’s mission in Kabul on Friday.
In a post on X, Dar said the move followed a “very productive visit” to Kabul in April, where he met with senior Taliban officials.
“To maintain this momentum,” he wrote, “I am pleased to announce the decision of the Government of Pakistan to upgrade the level of its chargé d’affaires in Kabul to the level of ambassador.”
The developments come days after a trilateral meeting in Beijing between the foreign ministers of Pakistan, the Taliban, and China. The talks focused on improving regional cooperation.
The decision to exchange ambassadors marks a significant diplomatic shift between Pakistan and the Taliban, whose relationship has been strained in recent years mainly due to the issue of the Pakistani Taliban, known as TTP, and frequent border clashes.
Although no country has formally recognized the Taliban since it returned to power nearly four years ago, several have maintained ties at the chargé d’affaires level.
Pakistan will become the fourth country — after China, the United Arab Emirates, and Uzbekistan — to exchange ambassadors with the Taliban administration.
