As the Taliban surge continues, India’s positive and constructive role in Afghanistan has been acknowledged by the United States (US) Department of Defence.
At his daily news conference, the Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby told reporters, ”India has played a constructive role in Afghanistan in the past in terms of training and other infrastructure improvements,”.
When Kirby was asked about the cooperation between India and the US in Afghanistan, he said that all efforts are being made to ensure stability and good governance in Afghanistan and India is ‘always welcome’.
On the question of the Taliban getting support from Pakistan, Kirby said that the US is also holding talks with the Pakistani leadership over the existence of safe havens across the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.
“We are also mindful that Pakistan and the Pakistani people also fall victim to terrorist activities that emanate from that region,” Kirby’s statement from a press briefing was quoted in a report by the Press Trust of India (PTI).
He added, “So, we all have a shared sense of the importance of closing down those safe havens and not allowing them to be used by the Taliban or other terrorist networks to sew discord.”
The US Defence Secretary Llyod Austin who was recently in India has claimed that the Afghan forces have the capability to counter the Taliban and make a big difference on the battlefield and assured them of America’s support when and where feasible.
“But where and when feasible will continue to support them with airstrikes, for instance,” Austin added.
However, Austin made it very clear that the US will round up the drawdown by the end of August and at the same time conduct a separate bilateral relation with the Afghan forces by providing them financial and logistical maintenance support from outside the country.
Click here to subscribe to The Commune on Telegram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.