India sends team to Kabul for meetings with Taliban; to oversee distribution of aid

A team from India, led by the external affairs ministry’s point person on Afghanistan, are sent to Kabul for meetings with senior members of the Taliban and to oversee humanitarian relief efforts. This is the first such visit since the collapse of the Ashraf Ghani government in August 2021.

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Like other countries, India has not recognised the Taliban setup in Afghanistan, though there have been both back channel contacts and meetings with the group in neutral venues such as the United Arab Emirates.

Following the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan, India ended its diplomatic presence from the country.

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The team, led by joint secretary JP Singh, who heads the Pakistan-Afghanistan-Iran desk in the external affairs ministry, will “meet the senior members of the Taliban and hold discussions on India’s humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan” while in Kabul, the ministry said in a statement.

Bloomberg reported that the team will oversee the delivery of India’s humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan and meet representatives of international organisations involved in the distribution of aid.

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It was not immediately clear which Taliban leaders the Indian team will meet, or the locations it will visit to see India-backed development projects.

Former ambassador Vivek Katju, who served as the Indian envoy to Kabul during 2002-05, welcomed the visit by the Indian team. “At long last, we have taken a sensible step. I hope this will lead to a permanent Indian presence in Kabul at a suitable level,” he said.

Following the Taliban takeover last August, India’s ambassador to Qatar, Deepak Mittal, met top Taliban negotiator Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai at the Indian embassy in Doha in September 2021 – the first officially acknowledged meeting between the two sides in recent years.

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However, even before the Taliban takeover, the two sides had opened channels of communication and there were several instances of contact between the Indian side and top Taliban leaders, such as Stanekzai and Abdul Ghani Baradar, in third countries. These contacts were largely driven by Indian security officials.