According to the United Nations, the Taliban, who have been in power in Afghanistan since last month, have questioned the credentials of Afghanistan's former U.N. ambassador and have requested to speak at the United Nations General Assembly's high-level meeting of world leaders which began on Tuesday.

The question presently before U.N. officials comes roughly a month after the Taliban stormed to power in Afghanistan, just as the U.S. prepared to leave at the end of August. The Taliban astounded the world by capturing land with astonishing speed and minimal resistance from the Afghan military, trained in the United States. The government, which the West backed, fell apart.

On September 15, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres received a communication from the currently accredited Afghan Ambassador, Ghulam Isaczai, with the list of Afghanistan's delegation for the assembly's 76th annual session, according to U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.

Five days later, Guterres received a letter on the letterhead of the "Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, Ministry of Foreign Affairs," signed by "Ameer Khan Muttaqi" as "Minister of Foreign Affairs," urging that Guterres attend the United Nations meeting of world leaders.

In the letter, Muttaqi claimed that former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani had been "ousted" as of August 15 and that countries worldwide "no longer recognize him as president," implying that Isaczai no longer does longer represents Afghanistan, according to Dujarric.

The Taliban said that Mohammad Suhail Shaheen, a new U.N. permanent representative, will be nominated by the Taliban.

The General Assembly's nine-member Credentials Committee must meet to issue a decision in seat disputes at the United Nations. Both letters have been delivered to the committee, according to Dujarric.

According to U.N. deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq, "no meeting of the credentials committee has been scheduled so far."

On the final day of the high-level summit, September 27, Afghanistan will deliver the concluding speech.