Indian Defense
India Invited To Afghanistan Meet In Doha This Week
The Regional Conference on Afghanistan is expected to take place on August 12. The meeting comes even as Doha is hosting the Troika Plus meeting on Wednesday involving the US, Russia, and China, plus Pakistan.
India has been invited to a meeting of regional countries on Afghanistan in Doha later this week, which will see the participation of countries like Turkey and Indonesia as well.
The invite was extended during the visit of Qatari Special Envoy for Counter-Terrorism and Mediation in Conflict Resolution Mutlaq Al Qahtani.
The Regional Conference on Afghanistan is expected to take place on August 12. The meeting comes even as Doha is hosting the Troika Plus meeting on Wednesday involving the US, Russia, and China, plus Pakistan.
Qahtani was in India for a 2-day visit starting last Friday, during which he met with India’s external affairs minister, Dr S Jaishankar, and foreign secretary Harsh Shringla.
Qatar’s Special Envoy also had a meeting with JP Singh Joint Secretary PAI and Secretary (CPV and OIA) Sanjay Bhattacharya in Delhi.
In a tweet after the meeting, EAM said, “The rapid deterioration of the security situation is a serious matter” and “a peaceful and stable Afghanistan requires that the rights and interests of all sections of society are promoted and protected.”
The special envoy during the various meetings was concerned about external players as much as internal. The visit and the meeting in Doha come amid a deteriorating situation in Afghanistan as the Taliban make territorial gains. The Taliban have now come close to the northern city of Mazar E Sharif, which is the capital of Balkh province. With this development, India has decided to evacuate its diplomats from its consulate.
India has been leading diplomatic engagements as the situation in Afghanistan deteriorates. Earlier this month, India hosted a meeting on Afghanistan at the United Nations Security Council under its presidency. The meeting came days after Afghan foreign minister Hanif Atmar requested India’s external affairs minister Dr S Jaishankar for such a meeting.
At the meeting, India’s envoy to the United Nations, T S Tirumurti, called on the Taliban to engage in “negotiations in good faith”, “eschew the path of violence” and “severe ties with Al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations”. Tirumurti said that the Taliban should “fully commit itself towards reaching a political solution” and “violence and military threats cannot be used to strengthen the negotiating position of any side” for which a “tangible demonstration of this commitment is required.”
During the around one-and-half-hour-long session, Afghanistan exposed Pakistan’s support for the ongoing Taliban offensive in the country and how the group continues to enjoy a “safe haven”.
The Afghan envoy to the United Nations, Ghulam M Isaczai, speaking at the United Nations Security Council, said, “Taliban continue to enjoy a safe haven and supply and logistics lines extended to their war machine from Pakistan.”