Kabul (Kubha News) – JP Singh, India’s special representative for Afghanistan affairs, met with Mullah Amir Khan Mutaqi, the Taliban’s foreign minister.
The spokesman for the Taliban’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs says that bilateral relations between Afghanistan and India, as well as economic and transit issues, were discussed in this meeting. Abdulqahar Balkhi says that JP Singh praised the Islamic Emirate’s fight against drugs, ISIS, and corruption and expressed interest in Delhi expanding its relations with Afghanistan in political, economic, and trade fields through the Chabahar port. Mutaqi emphasized the development of political and economic relations with India in the light of their ‘balanced policy’ and requested facilitation from Delhi in terms of commercial and educational visas.
JP Singh also discussed the development of economic and trade relations with Nuruddin Azizi, the Minister of Industry and Commerce of the Taliban government. A day earlier, Rochira Kamboj, India’s representative to the United Nations, said in a Security Council meeting that the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan is dire and that India’s assistance over the past two years has mainly focused on security, food, medical supplies, and education.
Kamboj said that like other countries, India wants the Taliban to pay more attention to combating terrorist groups, establishing inclusive governance, and supporting women’s rights.
Although India has not recognized the Taliban government officially, this is the first visit by a senior Indian official since the Taliban’s return to power. Unlike the 1990s, India aims to maintain its soft presence in Afghanistan and preserve its relations with the Taliban to maintain its influence in the region and to cooperate closely with the Taliban to prevent potential threats from Afghanistan.