New Delhi: National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval participated in the fifth Multilateral Meeting of Secretaries of Security Councils and National Security Advisers on Afghanistan in Moscow on Wednesday.
Apart from the host country, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan were also represented at the meeting. Various issues related to Afghanistan, including the security situation and humanitarian challenges facing Afghanistan, were discussed in the meeting.
The third round of this Conference was held in New Delhi under the chairmanship of Ajit Doval in November 2021. The fourth meeting was held in Dushanbe in Tajikistan in May 2022. Ajit Doval has emphasized that India will never abandon the Afghan people in their time of need and that the well-being and humanitarian needs of the people of Afghanistan are India's foremost priority, sources said.
Noting that "well-being and humanitarian needs of people of Afghanistan is India's foremost priority", he said this will continue to guide the government's approach and "India will never abandon the Afghan people in their time of need".
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Focusing on food security and medical supplies, India has so far delivered 40,000 MT of wheat, 60 tonnes of medicines, 500,000 Covid vaccines, winter clothing, and 28 tonnes of disaster relief, sources said. India's technical team is overseeing the humanitarian assistance programme. Standing with Aghans, India has granted fresh scholarships to 2260 Afghan students including 300 Afghan girls during the past two years.
Doval noted an inclusive and representative dispensation is in the larger interest of Afghan society, according to sources. He said that terrorism has become a major threat in the region and dealing with "Daesh and terror outfits like LeT and JeM requires intensified intelligence and security cooperation" between respective states and their agencies.
India reaffirmed the importance of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2593 (2021) which calls for terror outfits including those designated by UNSCR 1267 to be denied sanctuary in the region. Sources said Doval noted that "no country should be allowed to use Afghan territory to export terrorism and radicalization".
He further underlined that India is and will remain an important stakeholder in Afghanistan. "We always stood by the people of Afghanistan and will always support collective efforts to help Afghan people build a prosperous and vibrant nation once again", he said.
