India, Russia express concern at Afghan security situation, safety of minorities

NEW DELHI: Pakistan bears a special responsibility to ensure that Afghanistan soil is not used to spread terrorism, India said, during a government level consultation with Russia on the Afghan situation.

National security advisor Ajit Doval and his Russian counterpart Nikolai Patrushev met in New Delhi for a high level meeting, as both sides emphasized the need to prevent escalation of violence in Afghanistan.

This was the first detailed review of the Afghan situation involving Russia and India's ministries of defence, external affairs and security agencies since the fall of Kabul.

India highlighted links of Pakistan's ISI with terror groups in Afghanistan such as LeT and JeM, and expressed concern over security of minorities, including Hindus and Sikhs in that country.

Sources said that both sides agreed upon common threats emanating from Afghanistan, like Islamic radicalisation and extremism, flow of weapons to terror groups and chances of Afghanistan becoming a hub of opium production and trafficking.

India and Russia emphasized upon the need for Taliban to adhere to promises made, sources dsaid, without elaborating further.

A Russian read-out of the delegation-level talks said attention was paid to intensifying joint work by "special services and military bodies" of both the countries and that emphasis was given on further interaction on the "anti-terrorist track", combating illegal migration and drug trafficking.

During the talks, the importance of "defining parameters of the future state structure of Afghanistan by the Afghans themselves, as well as the need to prevent the escalation of violence, social, ethnic and confessional contradictions in the country, was emphasized".

The meeting comes a day after the Taliban, which seized the control of the war-ravaged country on August 15, announced its new caretaker government, consisting of hardliners, and no representation of women.

(With agency inputs)