India to upgrade technical mission in Kabul to full-fledged embassy

India will upgrade its technical mission in Kabul to a full-fledged Embassy, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar announced on Friday after meeting Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in New Delhi. “India is 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. To enhance that, I am pleased to announce the upgrading of India’s Technical Mission in Kabul to the status of Embassy of India,” Jaishankar said.
India had closed its embassy in Kabul after the Taliban seized power following the withdrawal of U.S.-led NATO forces in 2021 but reopened a small mission a year later 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 remains the only country to have formally recognised the Taliban administration. Jaishankar underscored India’s continued role in Afghanistan’s development and said both sides discussed the upkeep of existing projects and the completion of those still in progress.
“As a well-wisher of the Afghan people, India has a deep interest in your development and progress. Today, I reaffirm that our longstanding partnership, which has seen many Indian projects in Afghanistan, stands renewed. We can discuss the maintenance and repair of finished projects as well as steps to complete others to which we have already committed. Beyond that, other development priorities of Afghanistan can be discussed by our teams,” the EAM said.
Highlighting India’s continued assistance to Afghanistan over the years, Jaishankar said,, “India has long supported the health security of Afghanistan, including during the COVID-19 pandemic. We are now ready to commit to six new projects, the details of which can be announced after the conclusion of our talks. A gift of 20 ambulances is another gesture of goodwill, and I would like to hand over five of them to you personally as a symbolic step.” Jaishankar also expressed concern over the forced repatriation of Afghan refugees. “The plight of forcibly repatriated Afghan refugees is a matter of deep concern. Their dignity and livelihood are important. India agrees to help construct residences for them and continue providing material aid to rebuild their lives,” he said.The EAM also spoke about shared interests in trade, commerce, education and sports. He welcomed the commencement of additional flights between Kabul and New Delhi and announced that India would expand opportunities for Afghan students to study at Indian universities.
Muttaqi is on a six-day visit to India aimed at boosting ties with New Delhi. His trip was made possible after the U.N. Security Council Committee temporarily lifted a travel ban on him to allow diplomatic engagements abroad. Muttaqi is among several Afghan Taliban members under U.N. sanctions, including a travel ban and asset freeze, though temporary exemptions are sometimes granted for diplomatic purposes. During the meeting, assuring India of Kabul’s stance, Muttaqi said Afghanistan would not allow any group to use its territory against another country. “In the recent earthquake in Afghanistan, India was the first responder. Afghanistan looks at India as a close friend. We want relations based on mutual respect, trade and people-to-people ties. We are ready to create a consultative mechanism to strengthen our relations,” Muttaqi said during the meeting. On several blasts in Kabul and other areas, Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi said, "I think it’s a wrong step by the Pakistan government."

VIDEO | Delhi: "I think it’s a wrong step by the Pakistan government. Such issues cannot be resolved by strength... If someone dares to commit such acts, they should first talk to Britain, the USSR, and America-they’ll tell them it’s not good to play such games with Afghanistan,… pic.twitter.com/J2SVscqQMB

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