Australia's decision to sanction top Taliban officials has been praised as "principled and timely" in shunning the oppressive regime but it complicates how the government deals with Afghanistan diplomatically.
Canberra placed the measures on three Taliban ministers and Afghanistan's chief justice meaning Australians will be prohibited from supplying them with arms or similar services, as well as using or dealing with their assets and funds.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the harsh diplomatic actions penalise the Taliban for demonstrating "contempt for the rights, freedoms and welfare of the Afghan people, particularly women and girls".
The ousted Afghan government's diplomatic representative in Canberra said the "world-first" autonomous sanctions framework was a step in the right direction in isolating the Taliban.
"It sends a powerful message that impunity for crimes against the people of Afghanistan, especially women and girls, will not be tolerated," the embassy said on Sunday.
"Australia's leadership sets a vital precedent for other nations to adopt similar measures to hold the Taliban accountable for their ongoing violations of international law."
The statement from the embassy, operating under the banner of the Coordination Council of Diplomatic and Consular Missions of Afghanistan, comes at a time when its future is up in the air.
Ambassador Wahidullah Waissi, an appointee of the government ousted by the Taliban, remains at the embassy.
But consular services have been hamstrung after the Taliban said in July 2024 it would no longer recognise documents issued by missions from the former republic.
At Senate estimates on Thursday, Senator Wong said there were "practical challenges" for the embassy to continue to operate with the ambassador's diplomatic credentials expiring in 2026.
The department was still engaging with the ambassador in "good faith", she said.
Senator Wong noted there were more than 27,000 Afghan humanitarian entrants who arrived in Australia since the Taliban took power in 2021.
"We understand that this for many in the community not just an issue of the embassy, but the painful and awful fact that we have a regime which is oppressive."
The foreign minister said it was risky for the embassy to provide services when paperwork was not being recognised by the governing Taliban regime and financial difficulties of the embassy staying afloat.
"We have an obligation to fellow Australians that that risk is not amplified," she explained.
The embassy maintained the diplomatic missions which the Taliban blacklisted remain "enduring symbols of Afghanistan's lawful representation".
Australia has already sanctioned 140 individuals and entities under the United Nations Security Council's Taliban framework.
Since the fall of Kabul in 2021, the Taliban have deepened their attacks on the rights of women and girls since taking over Afghanistan, according to Human Rights Watch.
They have also increasingly restricted civic space, carried out censorship, detained activists, and put LGBTQI Afghans in increasingly desperate situations, the rights group said.
The federal government has similar sanctions in place for other countries including Iran, Russia and North Korea.
