Taliban govt avers need to 'strengthen bilateral ties' with India after cagey Kabul meet

In the wake of a Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) top diplomat's Kabul visit, wherein Indian MEA Joint Secretary J.P. Singh met Afghanistan's Acting Deputy Foreign Minister Alhaj Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai on Wednesday, the Taliban has issued a statement on the first such meeting between India and its administration.

During this first-of-a-kind engagement, DFM Stanekzai asserted that the Afghan-Indian relations would move forward based on 'mutual respect and joint bilateral legitimate interests', and would not be influenced by other countries’ inter-rivalry, an official release by the Afghanistan Foreign Ministry read.

The Taliban spokesperson also claimed that India had called ties between the two countries 'historic' and had expressed its assistance in line with Afghanistan’s priorities with infrastructural and small projects, capacity building, educational scholarships and humanitarian aid. India does have old civilisational ties with Afghanistan and did more than most countries to aid the nation-building of Afghanistan during the US occupation. In fact, the Afghanistan parliament and its most important dam are both built by India. However, since the Taliban's return, its own ties to Pakistan and the installation of a ISI-backed leadership in Kabul had raised a question mark over the nature of that administration. Pakistan and Afghanistan continue to feud intermittently at the Durand line, however, with the regional Afghan tribes there do not recognise.

"To end, the two sides stressed the continuation of such meetings to strengthen bilateral relations," the Afghan Foreign Ministry statement claimed.

Envoy in Kabul checking delivery of supplies to Afghanistan: MEA

A multi-member delegation from India met senior members of the Taliban in Kabul to oversee humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan on Thursday, June 2. Addressing a press conference, the MEA had underlined that the visit should not be characterized as a 'diplomatic' engagement.

"Our team has gone there (Kabul), and I would not characterize it as diplomatic engagement. The team is there for the delivery operations of our humanitarian assistance. I don't see any other element. You're reading too much into this visit. The Afghan embassy here is operating. There are issues to be resolved. The international community is also looking into it," said MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.

The MEA also weighed in on the re-opening of the Indian Embassy in Afghanistan stating that the historical and civilizational ties between the two nations would guide India's approach to the Afghanistani people. "On our Embassy reopening... given the deteriorating situation in August 2021, we had pulled out India-based officials. Local staff continues to be there for maintenance and upkeep of the Embassy premises. Our historical and civilizational ties with Afghan people will guide what we do in Afghanistan," he said. 

On August 15, the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, putting an end to more than two months of military blitz. Since then, the law and order situation in the war-ravaged country has remained shaky with a shrinking economy and an unpredictable security situation for people. The terror group is under the clutches of its toughest challenge as it attempts to manage the national leadership, sidelined by the international community as a 'rogue state'. Since the Taliban's takeover in August 2021, India has continuously provided humanitarian assistance, including life-saving medicines to Afghanistan.