External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani to discuss the evolving situation in the war-torn country and reiterated India’s support for peace, stability, and development in the country.
Jaishankar is on a visit to Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, as part of a Connectivity Conference, after attending a crucial meeting of foreign ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Dushanbe. He met Ghani at the sidelines of the multilateral event.
Afghanistan witnessed a series of terror attacks in the last few weeks as the US aimed to complete the withdrawal of its forces from Afghanistan by August-end, ending a nearly two-decade of its military presence in the country.
This was the first high-level meeting between Delhi and Kabul since the government decided to pull out all Indian personnel from the Consulate in Kandahar. Internal assessments have suggested that while the Taliban has not been successful in moving in to many more populated cities, it will seek to control Kandahar, which was its traditional base. Officials said President Ghani was ‘determined’ to take back some of the strategic areas taken over by the Taliban.
India has major stakes in ensuring peace and stability in Afghanistan. It has invested nearly $ 3 billion in aid and reconstruction activities in the country. India has been supporting a national peace and reconciliation process which is Afghan-led, Afghan-owned, and Afghan-controlled.
