The Embassy of Afghanistan in

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

is the

Islamic Republic of Afghanistan The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan was a presidential republic that ruled Afghanistan from 2004 to 2021. The state was established to replace the Afghan interim (2001–2002) and transitional (2002–2004) administrations, which were formed ...

diplomatic mission A diplomatic mission or foreign mission is a group of people from a state or organization present in another state to represent the sending state or organization officially in the receiving or host state. In practice, the phrase usually deno ...

to the

Commonwealth of Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

. It is also accredited to

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

and

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

. It is located in the suburb of Deakin, at 4 Beale Crescent. The current Afghan Ambassador to Australia, serving since 2017, is

Wahidullah Waissi Wahidullah Waissi is a career Afghan diplomat. He is now serving as the ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the Commonwealth of Australia, New Zealand and Republic of Fiji. He worked as Director-General for Economic Cooperation ...

History

Before the establishment of the post-

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

Islamic Republic, Afghanistan had no permanent resident diplomatic mission in Australia. The precursor to the current Embassy opened in 2002, out of rented premises in Deakin. Then Ambassador

Mahmoud Saikal Mahmoud Saikal ( prs, محمود صیقل) is a senior Afghan diplomat and an international development specialist. He was the Permanent Representative of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the United Nations from October 2015 until Februar ...

endeavoured to establish a permanent base for Afghanistan's diplomatic operations in Australia. The current building that houses the Embassy was opened on 18 August 2005, by visiting Afghan Foreign Minister Dr Abdullah and Australian Foreign Minister

Alexander Downer Alexander John Gosse Downer (born 9 September 1951) is an Australian former politician and diplomat who was leader of the Liberal Party from 1994 to 1995, Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1996 to 2007, and High Commissioner to the United King ...

. The Embassy has been conducted many activities, such as promoting Afghan culture, notably through the Afghan Film Festival, celebrations regarding the 50th anniversary of bilateral relations such as organising the Australian tour of the

Zohra Orchestra The Zohra Orchestra, also known as the Afghan Women's Orchestra and Ensemble Zohra, is Afghanistan's first all-female orchestra, named after the music goddess in Persian writings. Founded in 2015, it has been in exile since the 2021 seizure of K ...

, inaugurating the Afghanistan-Australian People to People Dialogue and fostering closer political and economic ties between Afghanistan and Australia, New Zealand and Fiji. They have also been active in promoting the history of Afghans in Australia, going back to Afghan Cameleers in the 19th century.

Afghanistan-Australia People to People Dialogue

The Afghanistan-Australia People to People Dialogue is a cross-cultural platform designed to strengthen the bilateral relationship between the two countries in the realms of culture, politics, trade and strategy. It was launched in 2017 by the embassy. The first dialogue comprised delegations from Afghanistan, the Australian government, think tanks, academia, students, activists, Afghan Australians, journalists and representatives from civil society and private business. There was a second dialogue in 2019. Its main theme was women’s empowerment and the Afghan delegation comprised nine Afghan women from a range of professional backgrounds. The dialogue also focussed on the role of women in the

Afghan peace process Peace processes have taken place during several phases of the Afghanistan conflict, which has lasted since the 1978 Saur Revolution. The National Reconciliation Policy during the Karmal and Najibullah governments from the mid-1980s to 1992 ha ...

and the danger that the

poses to women’s rights in Afghanistan.

List of Ambassadors

Wahidullah Waissi submits his letter of credential to Peter Cosgrove

* 2002-2005:

* 2005-2007:

Mohammad Anwar Anwarzai Mohammad Anwar Anwarzai is the Head of United Nations Department at the Afghan Foreign Ministry and the former Afghan ambassador to Pakistan. Diplomat in the 70s He started his career as a civil servant in 1960 and worked in various sections of ...

* 2007-2011: Amanullah Jayhoon * 2011-2015: Nasir Andisha * 2017–Present:

References

{{Diplomatic missions in Australia

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

Afghanistan–Australia relations Embassies without a government

History

Afghanistan-Australia People to People Dialogue

List of Ambassadors

See also

References