When Russia recognized the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan last week, it didn’t just open a new embassy – it opened a new geopolitical front. For the first time since the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, a major world player has gone beyond informal contacts and embraced Kabul’s de facto rulers as legitimate partners.
On July 1, Taliban envoy Gul Hassan presented copies of his credentials to Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko. Two days later, Moscow made it official: the Islamic Emirate was now recognized – diplomatically, politically, and symbolically.
Russia took Afghanistan without firing a shotIn the post-American vacuum, Moscow doesn’t waste time