Germany has quietly softened its stance toward Afghanistan’s Taliban regime, despite insisting it does not recognise the radical Islamist government. In recent months, Berlin has not only treated Taliban instructions as legally binding but has also granted Taliban-appointed representatives official status and consular immunity on German soil.
On October 3rd, two new Afghan diplomats took up posts at the Consulate General in Bonn after the previous leadership—refusing to pledge allegiance to Kabul—was recalled by the Taliban. The German Foreign Ministry complied, declining to renew the consul general’s accreditation and accrediting the replacements at the Taliban’s request.
Both now enjoy consular immunity under the 1963 Vienna Convention, shielding them from prosecution for official acts and, otherwise, only for serious crimes. One was even registered under the title of “consul”—a designation the ministry insists does not constitute de jure recognition, though in practice he assumed control of the mission. With the takeover, the Taliban gained access to sensitive data, including information on exiled Afghans.
The Foreign Ministry argued it was legally obliged to accept the recall because Germany recognises Afghanistan as a subject of international law. Yet it simultaneously maintains that it does not recognise the Taliban as the country’s legitimate government. The contradiction is stark: Berlin has fulfilled Taliban instructions in full while denying that they hold lawful authority.
By allowing Taliban envoys to operate with immunity and authority in Germany, Berlin has helped confer a measure of de facto legitimacy upon the so-called Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan—something no state officially recognises.
