Foreign Minister of Afghanistan Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi reached New Delhi today on a visit to India. He is expected to be in India till the 16th of this month. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a social media post that the Indian side is looking forward to discussions with him on bilateral relations and regional issues. The visit comes after Mr Muttaqi was given a special exemption by the United Nations Security Council to travel to India. This is the first Ministerial level visit to India since Taliban took control in Afghanistan in August 2021.

Our correspondent reports that India has been having a conversation with the interim government in Afghanistan. External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar had spoken with Mr Muttaqi over phone in May this year and appreciated his condemnation of the Pahalgam terror attack. The External Affairs Minister had underlined India’s traditional friendship with the Afghan people and discussed ways and means of taking cooperation forward. During the recent earthquake in Afghanistan, India had sent relief material via Chabahar to Kunar province.