Islamic Republic of Afghanistan

The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan was a unitary presidential republic in Afghanistan from 2004 to 2021. The state was established to replace the Afghan interim (2001–2002) and transitional (2002–2004) administrations, which were formed after the 2001 United States invasion of Afghanistan that had toppled the partially recognized Taliban-ruled Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. However, on 15 August 2021, the country was recaptured by the Taliban, which marked the end of the 2001–2021 war, the longest war in US history. This led to the overthrow of the Islamic Republic, led by President Ashraf Ghani, and the reinstatement of the Islamic Emirate under the control of the Taliban, today the ruling government of Afghanistan. While most countries continue to consider the Islamic Republic to be the legitimate government of Afghanistan, it no longer exists, with neither any in-country activities or government in exile operations. The United Nations determined in 2022 that the Islamic Republic had ceased to exist on 15 August 2021, and that neither it nor any of its officials, including Ghani, remained legitimate representatives of Afghanistan. The caretaker representative of Afghanistan to the UN, Naseer Faiq, has since renounced the Islamic Republic, instead portraying himself as an independent representative of Afghanistan. The UN has not recognized the Taliban or any other entity as the new representative of Afghanistan.