Moldovan President Demands Punishment for Officials Who Approved Taliban Delegation Visit
Following a political controversy over the visit of a Taliban Ministry of Agriculture delegation to Moldova, the country’s president announced that those involved in granting entry permits to the delegation will face disciplinary action. This five-day trip, aimed at agricultural talks, sparked waves of criticism within Moldova’s government and political parties.
Maya Sandu, the President of Moldova, described the incident as “shameful” and stated that preliminary investigations indicate a senior official in the Ministry of Agriculture was not fully aware of Moldova’s official stance toward the Taliban. She added that some Foreign Ministry employees, after receiving an official request from another ministry, assumed the request had been authorized by a government official and thus did not properly communicate the matter to other institutions.
Moldova’s Prime Minister also called the visit “shameful and unacceptable,” emphasizing that the country does not recognize the Taliban administration. The National Party of Moldova and the Liberal Democratic Party for Europe have demanded the resignation of the State Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Foreign Minister, requesting that the government explain how this approval was granted.
Earlier, Moldova’s Foreign Ministry confirmed that the entry permit was issued to discuss agricultural exports and humanitarian issues. In contrast, the Taliban Ministry of Agriculture claimed that the trip was made at the official invitation of Moldova’s Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry, with the delegation led by Prime Minister Othmani’s Deputy, aiming to develop agricultural cooperation.
This event has become a political dispute in Moldova, especially since no country other than Russia has recognized the Taliban administration. Additionally, Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General, recently stated that the decision to recognize governments lies with individual states, and no such recognition has occurred among UN members to date.
