Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi, born on February 26, 1971, in Zarghoon village, Nad-e-Ali district of Helmand province, is a prominent member of the Taliban's Islamic Emirate. Since September 7, 2021, he has served as the Taliban's foreign minister. Muttaqi's extensive Taliban portfolio includes various past roles, such as heading the Kandahar Radio and serving as the Director of Information and Culture in Kandahar (1995), Minister of Information and Culture (1996), Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (1997), and Minister of Education (2000), a position he held until the U.S. ousted the Taliban regime in 2001. Between 2001 and 2021, Muttaqi played senior roles within the Taliban, including serving as a member of the Taliban's cultural commission, spokesperson, member of the Taliban's Political Office as well as the Negotiation Team in Doha, Qatar (2016-2021). Before the Taliban's takeover in August 2021, he held key positions as chief of staff to the Taliban's emir, Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada, and as the head of the Taliban's guidance and recruitment commissions. A key figure in the Taliban's foreign relations, Muttaqi played a central role in a 1997 visit to the United States, leading a Taliban delegation at the invitation of UNOCAL, a California-based oil company that later merged with Chevron Corporation. The purpose of the visit was to negotiate the construction of a gas pipeline through Afghanistan, but the venture did not materialize. In the 1990s, Muttaqi also represented the Taliban in the UN-led talks during their regime. Born to the late Haji Nadir Khan, Muttaqi's family originally hails from Paktia province. They became refugees in Pakistan when he was nine, where he attended a local madrassa. He then studied Arabic grammar and earned a degree in Islamic studies. Despite being granted travel exemptions, Muttaqi is listed on the UN's sanctions under the designation TAi.026.
