Afghanistan’s Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi arrived in New Delhi on Thursday for an official visit focused on strengthening bilateral relations and discussing key regional developments.
In a post on X, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “We look forward to engaging discussions with him on bilateral relations and regional issues.” Muttaqi’s visit will continue until October 16.
During his stay, Muttaqi is expected to meet External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.
The visit was originally planned several weeks ago but was postponed as Muttaqi awaited a travel exemption from the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). Last week, Jaiswal confirmed that the UNSC Committee had approved the exemption, paving the way for the visit.
Addressing the media on October 3, Jaiswal highlighted ongoing communication between New Delhi and Kabul. “We have been in conversation with the interim government in Afghanistan. You would recall the teleconference between External Affairs Minister and Foreign Minister Muttaqi, as well as discussions between our Joint Secretary and his Afghan counterparts,” he said.
Humanitarian aid and infrastructure cooperation are expected to be key agenda items. Referring to India’s prompt response to the recent earthquake in Afghanistan, Jaiswal noted, “On the day of the earthquake, we transported relief materials to Kunar province and later sent additional assistance through Chabahar.”
