Indian Ambassador Deepak Mittal and Taliban envoy discuss safety, security and early return of Indian nationals stranded in that country
Team Clarion
NEW DELHI — Three days after the Taliban announced that they are keen to maintain political and trade relations with India, Ambassador of India to Qatar, Deepak Mittal, on Tuesday met Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai, the head of Taliban’s political office in Doha, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a press statement.
The meeting assumes huge significance and is likely going to generate headlines and public debate as this is the first publicly acknowledged engagement of India with the Taliban and comes the day when the United States completely withdrew its army from Afghanistan.
“The meeting took place at the Embassy of India, Doha, on the request of the Taliban side,” said the ministry.
MEA said Ambassador Mittal and Stanekzai discussed safety, security and early return of Indian nationals stranded in Afghanistan. “The travel of Afghan nationals, especially minorities, who wish to visit India also came up,” said the statement.
With Taliban as rulers of Afghanistan India has apprehensions that Pakistan has a greater say in the affairs of the country and may work against Indian interests.
“Ambassador Mittal raised India’s concern that Afghanistan’s soil should not be used for anti-Indian activities and terrorism in any manner,” the statement said.
“The Taliban Representative assured the Ambassador that these issues would be positively addressed.”
Stanekzai, known as Sheru, trained in the Indian Military Academy in the 1982, rose to the ranks of Deputy Health Minister during the Taliban regime, and later served as a chief peace negotiator in Doha.
He was also Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Taliban regime. The 58-year-old Pashtun comes from the Stanekzai clan. He can speaks five languages and he served as Taliban’s Political Office chief between 2015-2019.
The Indian engagement comes amidst growing calls within the country for reaching out to Taliban, the de facto rulers of Kabul at the moment, to secure Indian interests.