By IANS,
New Delhi : Amid a spike in violence in Afghanistan, India Monday sought to intensify cooperation with Russia and China to stabilize the violence-torn country and joined them in supporting the Afghan government’s Taliban reintegration plan.
“They expressed concern at the deteriorating security situation and underlined the need for adequate development of the Afghan National Security Forces to enable Afghanistan to defend its sovereignty and independence,” said a joint communique after the Russia-India-China trilateral meeting.
Indian External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna held wide-ranging talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi and their Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Wuhan during which the situation in Afghanistan figured prominently in the discussions.
“The ministers expressed their support to the transition to increasing Afghan responsibility on national security, and to the Afghan government’s peace and reintegration programme,” said the statement.
“The ministers stressed the importance of cooperation among three countries on the issue of Afghanistan within current mechanisms,” it said, adding that the six-nation Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) was an important platform for regional cooperation on this issue.
India has been closely in touch with Russia over countering the Taliban resurgence in Afghanistan, but New Delhi has initiated a dialogue with Beijing over the Afghan situation recently.
Opposed to a selective approach towards terrorism, India has backed the reintegration plan of the Afghan government, but only on condition the Taliban renounces violence, cuts off links with terrorism and accepts the Afghan constitution.