Taliban want to address UN General Assembly, name Shaheen as envoy

New York, Sept. 22: Who should represent Afghanistan at the United Nations this month? It's a complex question with plenty of political implications. The Taliban, the country's new rulers for a matter of weeks, are challenging the credentials of their country's former UN ambassador and want to speak at the General Assembly’s high-level meeting of world leaders this week, the international body said.

The question now facing UN officials comes just over a month after the Taliban, ejected from Afghanistan by the United States and its allies after 9/11, swept back into power as US forces prepared to withdraw from the country at the end of August.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres received a communication on Sept. 15 from the currently accredited Afghan ambassador, Ghulam Isaczai, with the list of Afghanistan’s delegation for the Assembly’s 76th annual session.

Five days later, Mr Guterres received another communication with the letterhead “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, ministry of foreign affairs,” signed by “Ameer Khan Muttaqi” as “minister of foreign affairs,” requesting to participate in the UN gathering of world leaders.

Mr Muttaqi said in the letter that former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani was “ousted” as of Aug. 15 and that countries across the world “no longer recognise him as President,” and therefore Isaczai no longer represents Afghanistan, Dujarric said.

The Taliban said it was nominating a new UN permanent representative, Mohammad Suhail Shaheen, the UN spokesman said. He has been a spokesman for the Taliban during peace negotiations in Qatar.

Senior US State Department officials said they were aware of the Taliban’s request — the United States is a member of the UN credentials committee — but they would not predict how that panel might rule. However, one of the officials said the committee “would take some time to deliberate,” suggesting the Taliban’s envoy would not be able to speak at the General Assembly at this session at least during the high-level leaders’ week.

The Taliban qrote to UN chief saying that they were nominating a new UN permanent representative, Mohammad Suhail Shaheen, the UN spokesman said. He has been a spokesman for the Taliban during peace negotiations in Qatar.