Afghan Ambassador to Tajikistan Mohammad Zahir Aghbar says resistance in Panjshir only legitimate power

Panjshir, situated northeast of Kabul, is the only Afghan province that has not fallen to the Taliban.

"What regime? There is no new regime in Kabul. The city was occupied by the Taliban, who also captured a major part of Afghanistan. But they have not formed a government yet, and if one day they manage to do it, I hope that no one will recognize it," Aghbar told Italy's La Repubblica newspaper, when asked about contacts with the "new regime" in Kabul.

"The only legitimate government in Afghanistan is the government of Ahmad Massoud, the son of our national hero Ahmad Shah Massoud, which is already operating in the Panjshir Valley," the ambassador stated.

As for Massoud's negotiations with the militants, they are meant only to play for time ahead of fighting, the diplomat believes.

The resistance leader has been preparing for a war with the Taliban for years, according to Aghbar, and now all those opposing the radical group are gathering under the command of Massoud.

In a Monday interview with Foreign Policy magazine, Massoud said he would only give up if the Taliban formed an inclusive government and guaranteed equal rights for all citizens.