Afghanistan attends United Nations climate talks for first time since Taliban's return to power

Afghanistan's first delegation at United Nations climate talks since the Taliban's return to power in 2021 has arrived in Baku, Azerbaijan on Monday in a bid to garner support for climate action in the climate-vulnerable nation.

Matuil Haq Khalis, who's head of the country’s environment protection agency, told The Associated Press that Afghanistan is among the worst affected nations by climate change and needs the world’s support to deal with extreme weather like erratic rainfall, prolonged droughts and flash floods.

“All the countries must join hands and tackle the problem of climate change,” said Khalis, speaking through a translator.

Afghanistan is particularly vulnerable to climate change, with a recent assessment by climate experts ranking it the sixth most climate vulnerable country in the world.

In March this year, northern Afghanistan was hit by heavy rains resulting in flash floods, killing over 300 people. Climate scientists have found that extreme rainfall has gotten 25% heavier over the last 40 years in the country.

Khalis said Afghanistan has prepared national action plans to deal with climate change and will be updating its climate goals within the next few months. He said the country has great potential for wind and solar power but Afghanistan international support to harness that potential.

He added that the Afghanistan delegation was grateful to the Azerbaijan government for inviting them to the climate talks. The delegation will have an observer status at the talks, as the Taliban do not have official recognition as the government of Afghanistan.

Responding to a United Nations assessment that women are more vulnerable to climate change and must be included in efforts to combat climate action, Khalis said that “climate change impact doesn't have any boundaries, it can have its impact on women, children, men, plants or animals, so it requires collective work to tackle this issue.”

Khalis said he has requested bilateral talks with a range of countries including the United States and will be happy to sit down with them if the request is accepted.

“We were not part of the last three conferences ... but we are happy that this time we are here and we will be able to deliver the message of Afghan people with the international community,” said Khalis.

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Associated Press journalists Olivia Zhang, Peter Dejong, Aleksandar Furtula and Joshua A. Bickel contributed to this report.

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