The US State Department has asked China to clarify whether or not it has formally recognised the Taliban government.
Matthew Miller, a spokesman for the State Department, said at a media briefing: “I’ve seen those reports, and I think I would let the Chinese government speak to what this means in terms of their relationship and whether they have formally recognised the Taliban or not. I’ve seen some comments from them to the contrary.”
On Tuesday, Chinse President Xi Jinping accepted credentials from dozens of ambassadors in Beijing, including one from Afghanistan.
Responding to a query, Miller said the IEA relationship with the international community entirely depended on their actions.
Abdul Qahar Balkhi, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, wrote on X “The President of the People’s Republic of China H.E. Xi Jinping, accepted the letter of credence of Mawlawi Asadullah (@BilalKarimi44) as the ambassador extraordinaire and plenipotentiary of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan to China.”
He added: “Accepting the letter of credence of Mr. Karimi, President Xi welcomed him as (IEA) ambassador to China & wished him success in his tenure.”
At the ceremony, Karimi also met Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. FM Wang Yi congratulated him on presenting his credentials to the president of China.
Karimi took charge of the Afghanistan Embassy in Beijing in December 2023, presenting a copy of his letter of credence to the Foreign Ministry in Beijing.
Zabihullah Mujahid, Taliban’s chief spokesman, termed the acceptance of the credentials of the ambassador by the Chinese president as the beginning of Beijing’s official interaction with Kabul.
sa/mud
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