NEW DELHI: External Affairs Minister S M Krishna told visiting Afghan leader Burhanudin Rabbani on Thursday that India supported efforts towards peaceful and stable Afghanistan.
The minister held discussions with Rabbani, the chairman of Afghanistan’s High Peace Council who is in-charge of reconciliation talks with the Taliban. He is on a three-day visit to India, accompanied by a delegation of the council.
Earlier in the day, Rabbani, who had been Afghan president from 1992 to 1996, also called on Vice-President Mohammed Hamid Ansari. He is also likely to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
“As your neighbour, friend and well-wisher, we would like to see peaceful, stable and prosperous Afghanistan in which all sections of society, regardless of gender or ethnicity, can work shoulder-to-shoulder to secure a bright future for the country,” said Krishna in his welcome remarks at the start of talks. Describing Rabbani as an “old friend of India”, Krishna pointed out that this was their second meeting, following an earlier one in January in Kabul.
“…I was struck by his considerable understanding of the challenges confronting Afghanistan and the region,” he said.
Pointing out India and Afghanistan shared the “closest of relations”, the minister added, “In your quest for progress, economic development and social harmony, you can always count on India’s unstinted support.”
Echoing those views, Rabbani had also agreed that both nations enjoy “historically close and broad based ties”. He added that India was “supporting peace and stability in Afghanistan”.
