Taliban accept Iran’s reservations for acting consul in Mashhad

Sources have reported that the interim Afghan government has finally accepted the Islamic Republic of Iran's request to follow the Vienna Convention's procedures for introducing, approving, and accepting diplomats. Consequently, the "acting" consul appointed by the Taliban for the Afghan consulate in Mashhad, northeastern Iran, has been accepted by Iran.

The mission of Abdul Jabar Ansar, the Afghan consul in Mashhad, has ended. In accordance with the legal procedures outlined in the Vienna Convention, the Taliban interim government has introduced Ansar’s successor as the “acting” consul for this consulate.

Sources stated that the acting consul has been accepted by Iran and will soon be officially introduced.

Previously, the Islamic Republic of Iran had rejected the Taliban-appointed diplomat in Mashhad, due to the Taliban not following the legal procedures stipulated by the Vienna Convention.

At that time, Nasser Kanaani, the spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, stated that any changes in the consular staff of Afghanistan in Mashhad must comply with the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.

Kanaani’s reaction was in response to reported changes in the Afghan consulate’s staff in Mashhad, made by the Taliban’s Foreign Ministry without informing Iranian authorities.

The acceptance of the Taliban-appointed envoy is solely to facilitate consular services for millions of Afghan migrants in Iran. It does not signify Tehran’s formal recognition of the Taliban government.

Iran’s says it stance on the necessity of forming an inclusive government with domestic legitimacy in Afghanistan remains unchanged.

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