UN extends mandate for Monitoring Team in Afghanistan as Kabul urges West to rethink policy

The United Nations Security Council has renewed the Monitoring Team's mandate for another year. The Team supports the 1988 Afghanistan Sanctions Committee, keeping in place restrictions that target individuals and entities linked to the Taliban.

All 15 members of the Security Council voted in favour of the resolution.

However, Afghanistan’s authorities have criticised the move.

Government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said extending sanctions is “a failed approach” and argued there was no need to “repeat such experiences”, calling on Western countries to reconsider their policies and engage in “constructive cooperation and interaction” with Afghanistan.

The UK mission to the United Nations said the vote sent a message to Kabul. 

“Today the UN Security Council unanimously renewed the 1988 sanctions regime against the Taliban. The Taliban must take meaningful steps to adhere to their international obligations, including on counter terrorism and protecting the rights of women and girls,” it said on X.

Meanwhile, Russia, while backing the renewal, warned against expanding the monitoring team’s focus. In an explanation of vote, Russia’s Deputy Permanent Representative Anna Evstigneeva said, “At the same time, it is noteworthy that the text of the resolution is strikingly oversaturated with elements that are not directly related to the implementation of the 1988 Security Council sanctions regime.”  

China said Afghan territory must not be used to support terrorism or threaten other countries, and urged the Afghan authorities to eliminate “terrorist forces” operating on their soil. It stressed the importance of counter-terrorism efforts and called for continued attention to security concerns in Afghanistan as the sanctions monitoring mandate was extended.

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The 1988 list includes senior Afghan officials, among them Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, Prime Minister Mohammad Hassan Akhund, Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani, and Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi.

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The sanctions can restrict international travel and freeze any overseas assets under member states’ jurisdiction, while also limiting arms-related support - measures the Council says target individuals and entities deemed to threaten the peace, stability and security of Afghanistan.

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