'India Willing To Stand By Afghan People As In Past', Says EAM S Jaishankar At UN High-Level Meeting

"India is willing to stand by Afghan people, as in the past": Union External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said at a UN High-Level Meeting on the Humanitarian Situation in Afghanistan.

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New Delhi: Union External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday spoke about the situation in Afghanistan and India’s views and concerns on the same at the UN High-Level Meeting on the Humanitarian Situation in the country.

“Afghanistan is passing through a critical and challenging phase. There's been a sea change in its political, economic, social and security situation and consequently, in its humanitarian needs,” the External Affairs said, as quoted by news agency ANI.

Speaking at the UN High-Level Meeting on the Humanitarian Situation in Afghanistan, Union External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that as an immediate neighbour, “India is monitoring developments with understandable concern”. 

“UNDP recently assessed that there is an imminent threat of poverty levels rising from 72 per cent to 97 per cent there. This would have catastrophic consequences for regional stability,” he emphasised.

The Minister also said it is important that issues of travel and safe passage that can emerge as obstacles to humanitarian assistance be immediately sorted out. 

“Those who wish to travel in and out of Afghanistan should be granted such facilities without obstruction,” EAM Jaishankar added.

He further expressed that the normalisation of regular commercial operations of Kabul airport would not only assist in travel but also become the basis of a regular flow of relief material. 

“This would also accelerate activities that would complement domestic relief measures,” EAM Jaishankar stated.

Elaborating on India's position, S Jaishankar said that “India’s own approach to Afghanistan has been guided by historical friendship with its people. This will continue to be the case. Even in the past, we have contributed to the humanitarian needs of that society”.

“Our friendship is reflected in Indian development projects in all 34 (Afghan) provinces. In face of the grave emergency situation, India is willing to stand by Afghan people, as in the past. The international community must come together to create the best possible, enabling environment,” he asserted

He also stated that India has consistently supported the central role of United Nations in Afghanistan's future.

“Once relief material reaches that country, the world will naturally expect a non-discriminatory distribution across all sections of Afghan Society. Only the United Nations has the capacity to monitor such endeavour and reassure donors. As the picture becomes clearer in respect of legitimate concerns, I am confident that the world will step forward and assist the Afghan people in this hour of need,” he added.

India also stressed that UN resolution 2593 should drive the approach of the international community in the coming days in this critical phase of Afghanistan.

Resolution 2593 was adopted by UNSC under the presidency of India on August 30, 2021, with Russia and China abstaining from voting. It demands that Afghan territory should not be used to threaten or attack any country or to shelter or train terrorists.

Meanwhile, the Indian government has reportedly directed border forces and armed police units deployed in the counter-terrorism grid to prepare and administer a new training module on the Taliban and its modus operandi to the troops.

International troops pulling back from Kabul paved the way for the interim Taliban government and the power shift is expected to have a “serious bearing" on the security situation in India.

Keeping in view the current situation ground forces and their intelligence setup have been told to upgrade their strategy, tactics and combat syllabus on the new “geo-political situation in central and south Asia and its grave security implication on India’s borders and the hinterland," according to news agency PTI.

The directives have come due to concerns of infiltration from across the border from Pakistan on India’s west and illegal entry of terrorist operatives including foreign terrorist fighters from open fronts expected to increase.