There Is The Taliban And The Military Regime, The UN Suspends Granting Of Credentials To Afghanistan And Myanmar

Ilustrasi PBB. (Wikimedia Commons/Tom Page)

JAKARTA - The UN committee agreed to postpone the decision on who will represent Afghanistan and Myanmar at the UN, due to claims from the military regime and the Taliban.

The Taliban and the military regimes that took power in Afghanistan and Myanmar are 'competing' with ambassadors appointed by the governments they ousted for both countries' seats at the United Nations.

Meanwhile, the UN's acceptance of the Taliban and Myanmar's junta would be a step towards the international recognition both seek.

The nine-member UN Credentials Committee, which includes Russia, China, and the United States, meets at UN headquarters to consider credentials for all UN members for the General Assembly session, which currently has 193 members.

Diplomats told Reuters the committee was likely to delay its decision on the representatives of Afghanistan and Myanmar with the understanding that current ambassadors to both countries remained in those seats.

The committee chair, Sweden's Ambassador to the United Nations Anna Karin Enestrom, told reporters the decision had been delayed, declining to comment on whether the current ambassadors to Afghanistan and Myanmar would still represent their countries.

The committee, which also includes the Bahamas, Bhutan, Chile, Namibia, Sierra Leone, and Sweden, will now submit its report on the credentials of all members to the UN General Assembly for approval before the end of the year.

Both the committee and the General Assembly have traditionally made decisions on credentials by consensus, diplomats said.

The Taliban, which seized power in mid-August from the internationally recognized government, has nominated its Doha-based spokesman Suhail Shaheen as Afghanistan's ambassador to the United Nations. The current UN ambassador appointed by the ousted government, Ghulam Isaczai, has also asked to remain in the chair.

When the Taliban last ruled Afghanistan between 1996 and 2001, the ambassador of the government they ousted remained the UN representative, after the credential committee delayed its decision on a rival claim to the seat.

Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the Taliban's desire for international recognition is the only leverage other countries have, to press for an inclusive government and respect for rights, especially for women, in Afghanistan.

The UN-nominated Taliban envoy Shaheen tweeted last month: "We have all the necessary conditions to occupy Afghanistan's seat at the UN. We hope that legal requirements will supersede political preferences."

Myanmar's military regime, which seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February, has proposed military veteran Aung Thurein to be its envoy at the United Nations.

Current ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun, appointed by Suu Kyi's government, has also asked to renew his accreditation at the United Nations, despite being the target of a plot to kill or injure him for his opposition to the coup.

The former UN special envoy to Myanmar, who resigned last month, warned no country should recognize or legitimize the regime, while Secretary-General Guterres vowed to mobilize pressure on February "to ensure the coup fails."