NEW DELHI — External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar today announced the significant diplomatic decision to upgrade India’s Technical Mission in Kabul to the status of a full-fledged Embassy of India. The announcement came during his bilateral meeting with Afghanistan’s Acting Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi in New Delhi.
The move marks a major step in New Delhi’s engagement with Afghanistan and signals a renewed commitment to the country’s development and stability.
In his opening remarks, Dr. Jaishankar emphasized the shared security challenges facing both nations, stressing the imperative for coordinated action against extremism. “We must coordinate efforts to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations,” he stated, underlining that the common commitment to growth and prosperity is “endangered by the shared threat of cross-border terrorism.”
Reiterating India’s deep interest in Afghanistan’s progress, Dr. Jaishankar affirmed, “India is fully committed to the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Afghanistan.” He added that closer cooperation between India and Afghanistan would contribute not only to Afghanistan’s national development but also to regional stability and resilience.
In a strong gesture of goodwill and commitment to humanitarian assistance, the External Affairs Minister also announced a new aid package. India is ready to commit to six new development projects and will gift 20 ambulances to Afghanistan. Furthermore, India will provide MRI and CT scan machines to Afghan hospitals and deliver vaccines for immunization to support the country’s health sector.
Responding to the Indian Foreign Minister, Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi assured that Afghanistan would not permit its territory to be used to threaten or act against other nations. He expressed a desire for enhanced relations, stating that Afghanistan values its good relationship with India and wants future ties to be based on “mutual respect, trade and people-to-people relations.”
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