Afghan embassy in India ends operations, cites lack of diplomatic support

New Delhi: The Afghanistan embassy in India on Sunday formally stopped its operations, citing a lack of support from the host government, failure to meet expectations in serving Afghanistan's interests and a reduction in personnel and resources.

The ambassador of Afghanistan Farid Mamumdzay and several other senior diplomats have left India. Since the last few days, the embassy was being run largely by its Indian employees. Now, the embassy has fired these employees as well and shut down operations completely.

The Indian government is closely monitoring the situation. Sources said the ambassador has been out of India for the past many months and there has been a steady departure of other diplomats to third countries, reportedly after receiving asylum. There were reports of infighting among embassy personnel.

Mamundzay, appointed by the Ashraf Ghani government, was operating as the Afghan envoy even after the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021. In April-May, the embassy was rocked by a power struggle in the wake of reports of the Taliban appointing a charge d'affaires to head the mission, replacing Mamundzay.

Following the episode, the embassy came out with a statement saying that there was no change in its leadership. The tussle for power had erupted after Qadir Shah, who had been working as a trade councillor at the embassy since 2020, wrote to the ministry of external affairs in late April, claiming that he was appointed as the charge d'affaires at the embassy by the Taliban.

In its latest statement, the Afghanistan embassy in New Delhi said it regrets to announce the decision to cease its operations, effective October 1.

"It is with profound sadness, regret and disappointment that the embassy of Afghanistan in New Delhi announces this decision to cease its operations," the embassy said in a statement.

The embassy also thanked India for its support and assistance over the last 22 years. The embassy said that this decision, while deeply regrettable, was made after careful consideration, taking into account the historic ties and long-standing partnership between Afghanistan and India.

The embassy statement listed key factors affecting its ability to continue the mission effectively. The embassy cited a "lack of support from the host government", alleging that it has experienced a notable absence of crucial support from the host government, which it said hindered its ability to carry out duties effectively.

However, the Indian government, it is learnt, has been providing logistical support to the embassy, which has been facing a financial crunch by not cutting electricity and water supplies among other basic amenities, including security.

The mission also cited "failure to meet expectations in serving Afghanistan's interests" as one of the reasons.

"We acknowledge our shortcomings in meeting the expectations and requirements necessary to serve the best interests of Afghanistan and its citizens due to the lack of diplomatic support in India and the absence of a legitimate functioning government in Kabul," the statement from the mission said.

The statement also said that due to unforeseen and unfortunate circumstances, there has been a significant reduction in both personnel and resources available to it, making it increasingly challenging to continue operations.

"The lack of timely and sufficient support from visa renewal for diplomats to other critical areas of cooperation led to an understandable frustration among our team and impeded our ability to carry out routine duties effectively," the statement said.

Given these circumstances, "it is with deep regret that we have taken the difficult decision to close all operations of the mission with the exception of emergency consular services to Afghan citizens till the transfer of the custodial authority of the mission to the host country," it said.

Meanwhile, the Afghan minorities council in New Delhi has said that “officials of the Afghan embassy in New Delhi have used the current political situation in Afghanistan as a tool for their vested gains, including seeking refuge in other countries rather than assisting and facilitating the Afghans residing in India since the last 75 years."

It added that the Afghan community in India has been facing numerous issues for many months, including the issuance and renewal of passports and the lack of basic consular assistance from the embassy. "Due to their non-cooperation and their internal disputes, we were left with no option," the council said.