| New Delhi – India on Friday upgraded diplomatic ties with Afghanistan’s Taliban administration, giving a boost to the diplomatically isolated group, by announcing it would reopen its embassy in Kabul. India closed its embassy in Kabul following the withdrawal of US-led NATO forces from war-torn Afghanistan four years ago, though it launched a small mission in 2022 to facilitate trade, medical support and humanitarian aid. About a dozen countries including China, Russia, Iran, Pakistan and Turkey have embassies operating in Kabul, although Russia is the only country to have formally recognised the Taliban administration, whose members are under UN sanctions including a travel ban and asset freeze. India’s announcement came during talks in New Delhi between Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and his counterpart in the Taliban administration, Amir Khan Muttaqi, who is on a six-day visit after getting a temporary exemption on his travel ban. It was the first such trip to India by a Taliban leader since 2021. “India will raise its technical mission to a diplomatic mission in Kabul, and our diplomats will also come here,” Muttaqi told reporters on Friday, adding that the aim was for the two countries to slowly return to “normalcy”. Muttaqi’s visit aimed to develop ties with New Delhi and highlighted Taliban efforts to expand engagement with regional powers in a quest for economic relations and eventual diplomatic recognition, analysts said. In his opening remarks on Friday, Muttaqi referred to ongoing counter-terrorism efforts and said the Taliban administration would not allow anyone to use Afghanistan’s territory for targeting other nations. “We hope that Afghanistan and India, on an official level and in different areas, increase their engagement,” he said. In his remarks about Friday’s deal, Jaishankar said India was “fully committed to the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Afghanistan”. “Closer cooperation between us contributes to your national development, as well as regional stability and resilience,” he said, adding that India’s “technical mission” in Kabul was being upgraded to an embassy. India and Afghanistan have historically had friendly ties, but New Delhi does not recognise the Taliban government. |
India Upgrades Diplomatic Ties, Reopens Embassy in Taliban-Run Afghanistan
