Developments in Afghanistan should be as inclusive as possible, says India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday that the Taliban’s return to Afghanistan has affected the country’s neighbours the most, while addressing the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit.

Modi said that it is necessary that “the international community should take a decision on the recognition of the new system thoughtfully and collectively”.

“The developments in Afghanistan should be as inclusive as possible. Women and minorities need to be protected,” he said.

Modi’s statement came at the 21st SCO summit in Tajikistan’s capital, Dushanbe. The PM said the change of power in Afghanistan happened without negotiation, and that questions arise on the acceptability of the new system. Representation of all sections of Afghanistan including women and minorities is important, he said.

“The situation in Afghanistan is worsening given the humanitarian and financial crisis that the country is facing. The global community should be careful in the way it approaches issues related to Afghanistan,” Modi said, adding that the new regime was not “inclusive”.

The PM said the global community cannot let radicalism take over Afghanistan. “We need to arrive at mechanisms to ensure that Afghanistan is not used for any terror activities. SCO needs to work towards it,” he said. He added that this mechanism should have zero tolerance towards terror.

The PM said India is willing to continue providing help to its Afghan friends, as “our relations are centuries-old”.

In his earlier virtual address at the SCO, Modi also called for enhancing connectivity between the landlocked Central Asian countries and India but at the same time noted that connectivity projects should be consultative, transparent and they should be implemented while respecting the territorial integrity of all countries.

The eight-member SCO grouping of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India and Pakistan is holding its 21st summit at Dushanbe.