Afghan UN Envoy Calls for UNAMA Shift Toward Facilitating Political Transition
DID Press: Afghanistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Naseer Ahmad Andisha, has urged a fundamental overhaul of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), saying it should move beyond humanitarian engagement and actively support a political dialogue aimed at establishing an inclusive and legitimate governing system.
In a recent article, Andisha said UNAMA should not limit its role to its presence in Kabul and delivery of humanitarian aid, but instead help facilitate structured political dialogue and a transition toward a broadly representative political order.
He argued that developments involving opposition groups to the Taliban signal the emergence of a new phase of political and military confrontation in the country.
Andisha warned that the assumption of long-term stability under Taliban rule is “an illusion,” citing rising ethnic grievances, the expansion of extremist networks, and increasing armed resistance as factors undermining the current order.
He further stated that opposition forces inside and outside Afghanistan have reached broad consensus around three core principles: popular sovereignty, respect for human rights, and preservation of national unity and independence.
The envoy also called for the immediate appointment of a high-level international representative with broad political authority to oversee a national dialogue process.
According to Andisha, Afghanistan’s sustainable future can only be achieved through an inclusive constitutional process involving all ethnic groups, women, civil society actors, and political movements.
He warned that continued exclusionary governance could turn Afghanistan into a source of regional insecurity, pointing to the presence of Islamic State Khorasan Province as evidence of growing extremist threats.
Andisha also urged members of the UN Security Council not to treat Taliban rule as a fixed reality, but instead to support the emergence of a legitimate and inclusive political alternative for Afghanistan’s future.