Maldives has recalled its High Commissioner posted in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Apna Punjab Media: Maldives has recalled its High Commissioner posted in Pakistan for holding an unauthorized meeting with an Afghan Taliban government diplomat. Pakistani officials said that they are aware of this development. Maldives has not recognized the Taliban government of Afghanistan. The Taliban seized power in August 2021 after the withdrawal of US and NATO forces from Afghanistan. The Maldives Foreign Ministry said in a statement on November 3 that the recent meeting between Maldives High Commissioner to Pakistan Mohammed Thoha and Afghanistan’s Chargé d’Affaires Ahmed Shakib was “not approved by the Government of Maldives.” Without giving details, the statement said that appropriate action was taken against Thoha on Saturday. A few days before this, the Afghan Embassy in Islamabad had said in a statement that both the officers traveled to Maldives and Central Asia via Afghanistan. The meeting was organized to discuss ways to enhance cooperation and trade relations between the countries. The Maldives High Commissioner in Islamabad has removed Thoha’s photo from its website.