Kabul mission upgraded to embassy as Af addresses India’s security concerns
India on Friday announced the upgrade of its technical mission in Kabul to a full-fledged embassy and decided to restart infrastructure and development projects in Afghanistan even as New Delhi appreciated the Taliban regime for showing sensitivity towards its security concerns.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar made the announcements during his wide-ranging talks with Afghanistan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, who is on a six-day visit to India.
Muttaqi said Afghanistan would not allow any elements to use its territory against New Delhi’s interests and identified the Daesh terror group (ISIS) as the main challenge for the region. As the two sides discussed counter-terrorism, Muttaqi said Kabul had been at the frontline of this struggle, his statement coming hours after Pakistan allegedly carried out two strikes inside Afghanistan.
At a media briefing, Muttaqi confirmed Pakistan’s role in the strikes, but clarified that these occurred near the border. In a post on X, former US envoy to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad expressed concern over the alleged Pakistan strikes in Kabul, terming these as a “huge escalation that posed dangerous risks”.
Jaishankar took up the issue of both countries being endangered by the “shared threat of cross-border terrorism”. He sought to coordinate efforts to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. “We appreciate your sensitivity towards India’s security concerns. Your solidarity with us in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terrorist attack was noteworthy,” Jaishankar told Muttaqi.
The minister craftily referred to Afghanistan as “contiguous neighbour”, indicating the border of original Jammu Kashmir shared with Afghanistan.
Muttaqi’s visit is the first by any Taliban minister to India since the August 2021 change of regime in Kabul. Even since, New Delhi has been insisting that Afghanistan’s soil must not be used for any terrorist activities against any country.
A joint statement after the talks stated that “India would further deepen its engagement in development projects, particularly healthcare, infrastructure and capacity-building”.
“Pleased to announce the upgrade of India’s technical mission in Kabul to the status of embassy,” Jaishankar told Muttaqi during the talks. New Delhi had closed its embassy immediately after the Taliban returned to power. The operations resumed with a “technical team” being stationed in Kabul in 2022. In April this year, a new visa module was implemented and a greater number of visas were being issued in medical, business and student categories.
Before the return of the Taliban, India had invested almost $3 billion in projects across Afghanistan. The joint statement listed new projects, including the establishment of a thalassemia centre, a modern diagnostic centre and replacement of a heating system at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Child Health in Kabul. Additionally, India will construct a 30-bed hospital in Kabul’s Bagrami district, an oncology centre and a trauma centre in Kabul, and five maternity health clinics in the provinces of Paktika, Khost and Paktia. New Delhi will also continue to extend medical assistance and provide high-quality healthcare treatment to Afghan nationals.
Jaishankar also announced a gift of 20 ambulances, five of which were handed over personally to the Afghan delegation. India will also provide MRI and CT scan machines to Afghan hospitals and deliver vaccines for immunisation and cancer medicines. India also offered to reconstruct houses in areas affected by the recent earthquake at Kunar and Nangarhar. A foodgrain consignment would be delivered in Kabul today, the minister assured.
India Afghanistan would also be looking to cooperating on water management and irrigation. This is vital as several rivers originating in Afghanistan are the tributaries of the Indus, which is Pakistan’s main river.
India