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Muttaqi meets with visiting Indian delegation, focuses on Afghan-India relations
An Indian delegation led by Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Joint Secretary J.P. Singh met Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) officials in Kabul on Thursday where they discussed various issues including diplomatic relations.
“Today, IEA Acting Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi received Indian MEA Joint Secretary J.P. Singh and accompanying delegation. The meeting focused on India-Afghan diplomatic relations, bilateral trade and humanitarian aid,” said Abdul Qahar Balkhi, IEA foreign ministry spokesperson.
“India would consider assisting and working with Afghanistan in various fields, and whilst India has recently opened up its borders and ports for Afghanistan exports leading to increased Afghan exports compared to past years, they would provide further facilitates in this area to help Afghanistan further increase its exports and strengthen its economy. To [this] end, they agreed to expand interactions between the two countries,” Balkhi added.
According to a spokesman from the MEA, Arindam Bagchi, the Indian delegation will also meet with senior IEA leaders and with representatives of foreign organizations.
The delegation also visited the Indira Gandhi Children Hospital, and power stations.
According to India’s MEA, New Delhi has already “dispatched several shipments of humanitarian assistance consisting of 20,000 MTs of wheat, 13 tonnes of medicines, 500,000 doses of Covid vaccine and winter clothing”.
“We have also assisted UNICEF by supplying almost 60 million doses of polio vaccine and two tonnes of essential medicines. India’s development and humanitarian assistance has received a widespread appreciation across the entire spectrum of Afghan society,” an MEA statement added.
Pakistan says communities living along the Afghanistan-Pakistan Durand Line want peace and stability, despite ongoing security concerns in the region.
Speaking during a weekly media briefing, Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said there are no major issues between the people of Afghanistan and Pakistan, adding that residents on both sides of the Durand Line want peaceful relations and greater regional stability.
However, Andrabi claimed that terrorism originating from Afghan territory continues to undermine peace efforts.
He said Islamabad believes militant activity crossing from Afghanistan remains a significant obstacle to improving regional security and bilateral ties.
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has repeatedly rejected such allegations, maintaining that no militant group is allowed to use Afghan soil to threaten neighboring countries.
Andrabi also said Pakistan remains diplomatically engaged on regional matters involving Afghanistan, Iran, India, and Somalia, stressing that dialogue and diplomacy remain Islamabad’s preferred means of resolving disputes.
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Afghanistan-Gambia ties discussed during Doha meeting
Both sides also exchanged views on strengthening diplomatic engagement and exploring future economic cooperation.
Suhail Shaheen, head of the Islamic Emirate’s embassy in Doha, has met with Omar Jah, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of The Gambia to Qatar, to discuss bilateral relations and areas of mutual interest.
According to a statement from the Afghan embassy in Doha, Jah also oversees Gambian diplomatic affairs related to Afghanistan.
The meeting focused on Afghanistan-Gambia relations, the current security situation in Afghanistan, and potential investment opportunities in the country.
Both sides also exchanged views on strengthening diplomatic engagement and exploring future economic cooperation.
Mahmood Khan Achakzai, a member of Pakistan’s National Assembly and head of the Pakhtunkhwa Awami National Party, has said that if capable statesmen had been in power, people living on both sides of the Durand Line could have moved freely across the line.
Speaking during a podcast interview, Achakzai said that countries with histories of major conflict, including Russia, Germany and the United Kingdom, now maintain far more open borders despite past wars. He said that in many such regions, only a “paper line” remains, with limited border restrictions.
Drawing comparisons with the disputed Durand Line boundary between Afghanistan and Pakistan, Achakzai argued that a similar arrangement could have been possible in South Asia.
“What is the problem here? A Punjabi could dance in Kandahar and a Pashtun could come here. Even if we are not formally one country, we could have effectively functioned like one,” he said.
The Pakistani politician also referred to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the later U.S.-led intervention, saying Afghanistan has the right to seek war reparations from those countries to support reconstruction efforts.
Achakzai further criticised the treatment of Pashtuns in Pakistan, alleging that individuals in cities including Lahore and Karachi have faced detention and deportation.
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