New Delhi: India today told the UN Security Council that it supports a “pragmatic engagement” with the Taliban, warning that reliance solely on punitive measures will reinforce a “business as usual” approach. It also backed the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan’s (UNAMA) concerns over Pakistan’s recent airstrikes that resulted in the killing of women and children.

Addressing the UNSC meeting on the situation in Afghanistan, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish, said that engagement with the Taliban must be coherent and structured to “incentivise positive actions.” He noted that focusing only on punitive steps has allowed the current situation to persist “for the last four and a half years.”

Reaffirming India’s commitment to Afghanistan

See Full Page