Amir Khan Muttaqi
NEW DELHI: The stunning turnaround in India’s ties with Taliban in the past few years on the back of its humanitarian aid for the people of Afghanistan is set to intensify further with a likely visit by acting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi to India on Oct 9-10.He is expected to meet external affairs minister S Jaishankar on the second day of the first trip to India by a senior Taliban official since the group took over the reins of Afghanistan in 2021.New Delhi had been in touch with Kabul since Aug for Muttaqi’s visit. As he faces a UNSC travel ban, India approached the Council for a waiver. It’s understood the request has now been granted, allowing the Centre to finalise the dates.Taliban minister’s visit will help explore new areas of cooperationThe unprecedented visit by the senior Taliban minister will cap a landmark year in India’s ties with Taliban that saw India shedding inhibitions of the past to upgrade its engagements with the regime in Kabul, despite not recognising it officially.This was done through a meeting between foreign minister Muttaqi and foreign secretary Vikram Misri in Dubai in Jan and the first political contact in the form of a phone call between Jaishankar and the Afghan minister in May.Backing India’s decision to host a Taliban minister, the Taliban head of political office and Afghan ambassador to Qatar, Suhail Shaheen, told TOI last month high-level visits are required to upgrade and strengthen ties. Shaheen had also said the visit will pave the way for exploring various fields of cooperation.In their meeting in Dubai, Misri assured Muttaqi India would consider engaging in development projects soon, in addition to continuing its ongoing humanitarian assistance programme.
