In a historic first, officials from Afghanistan’s Taliban administration are set to attend a United Nations climate conference next week in Baku, Azerbaijan, Reuters reported. This appearance at COP29 marks one of the most significant multilateral events the Taliban administration has participated in since they assumed power in Kabul in 2021, following the U.S.-led NATO withdrawal after two decades of conflict.
The Afghan Foreign Ministry announced that representatives from the National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA) have already arrived in Azerbaijan. However, due to the Taliban’s lack of formal international recognition, these officials will only participate as observers, limiting their engagement in the primary discussions reserved for full UN member states.
Despite having representatives at various regional meetings and UN discussions in Doha, the Taliban administration has faced international isolation. The United Nations has withheld Afghanistan’s official seat at the General Assembly since the Taliban takeover, citing concerns over restrictions imposed on Afghan women’s rights, including limitations on education and movement.
This participation at COP29 comes through an invitation from Azerbaijan, granting Afghan officials a platform to participate in side discussions and potentially engage in bilateral meetings, according to diplomatic sources familiar with the arrangements. However, Afghanistan’s inclusion remains largely symbolic, as the Taliban are excluded from formal climate negotiations overseen by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
This exclusion has also affected Afghan NGOs, which have faced challenges in attending recent climate summits, limiting the country’s voice on an issue where Afghanistan ranks as one of the most vulnerable. Climate impacts in Afghanistan have intensified in recent years, with severe droughts and devastating flash floods posing existential threats to its agricultural sector and rural communities. Subsistence farmers, who form a substantial part of the Afghan population, face heightened food insecurity due to worsening environmental conditions.
Some humanitarian advocates argue that Afghanistan’s isolation, driven by the international community’s non-recognition of the Taliban, only worsens the plight of ordinary Afghans.
"Afghanistan is one of the countries that is really left behind on the needs that it has," noted Habib Mayar, deputy general secretary of the G7+, a coalition of conflict-affected nations. "There is lack of attention, lack of connection with the international community, and then there are increasing humanitarian needs."
The Taliban maintains that it upholds women’s rights based on its interpretation of Islamic law, although it has imposed strict regulations requiring women to cover their faces in public and to seek male accompaniment outside the home. These policies have fueled much of the international criticism leading to Afghanistan’s diplomatic isolation.
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