Tokyo (TDI): A Taliban government delegation is visiting Japan for the first time, in a rare diplomatic trip outside of the region.
The Afghan delegation left Kabul on Saturday, in a visit that local media reported would last one week and included officials from the higher education, foreign affairs, and economy ministries.
“We seek dignified interaction with the world for a strong, united, prosperous, advanced, developed Afghanistan and to be an active member of the global community,” Latif Nazari, a deputy minister at the ministry of economy who is part of the delegation, said in a statement.
Taliban authorities make regular visits to neighbouring and regional nations, including in Central Asia, Russia and China.
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However, they have only officially visited Europe for diplomacy summits in Norway in 2022 and 2023.
Japan’s embassy in Kabul temporarily relocated to Qatar after the fall of the previous Afghan government and the takeover by the Taliban in 2021.
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However, the embassy has since reopened and resumed diplomatic and humanitarian activities in the country.
The Afghan delegation plans to “exchange views with Japanese authorities during their stay”, Japan’s state media reported.
