Former president Hamid Karzai left Kabul for the United Arab Emirates on Saturday where he will stay for three days before traveling to Germany, his close aide Shahzada Massoud said.

This is Karzai’s first trip abroad after the establishment of the Islamic Emirate in Afghanistan. 

Karzai’s trip also comes on the same day as a delegation of the Islamic Emirate led by acting defense minister Mawlawi Mohammad Yaqub Mujahid traveled to the UAE.

The Defense Ministry said that on this trip, the acting defense minister will meet with UAE leaders and Afghans who live in UAE and that it is also aimed at strengthening relations between the Islamic Emirate and Gulf States.