External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar meets Industry and Commerce Minister of Afghanistan, Alhaj Nooruddin Azizi, in New Delhi on Thursday, November 20, 2025. Photo credit: X@MoICAfghanistan X

The Taliban will not allow Afghan territory to be used against any country, said Amir Khan Muttaqi, Foreign Minister of the Taliban administration in Afghanistan.

Mr. Muttaqi, the first high-level Taliban leader to be hosted by India, held a rare media interaction in the Embassy of Afghanistan where he pitched for stronger bilateral trade ties through the Wagah border crossing between India and Pakistan.

“Today, we held a detailed discussion on our security concerns. The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has proved in the past four years that the territory of Afghanistan will not be used against others. Similarly, narcotics is dangerous in terms of its use as well as trafficking, and both sides agreed to carry out joint efforts to eradicate this problem,” said Mr. Muttaqi in his opening remarks. He emphasised that under the rule of the Taliban, terror groups from Pakistan, such as the Lashkar-e-Taiba, that were known to use Afghan territory to train their cadre, have been pushed out of the Afghan territory.

No joint operations

In response to a question on India and Afghanistan carrying out joint operations to rid Afghanistan of terror groups, Mr. Muttaqi said, “There is no question of international terrorists surviving in today’s Afghanistan where the government of the Islamic Emirate is strong.”

“Joint operations would have been necessary if terrorists were found operating in Afghanistan. We carried out extensive operations against terrorists inside Afghanistan over the past four years. During this period, no threat has emanated from the territory of Afghanistan targeting any country,” said Mr. Muttaqi in response to a question on whether Taliban would be willing to initiate joint action with India targeting terrorists in its territory.

Mr. Muttaqi, who used an interpreter to speak in Pashtu and also spoke in Urdu, reiterated the Islamic nature of the Taliban administration and said, “Our government is based on Islamic principle and we want to have friendly and brotherly ties with all countries in our region. This is an opportunity for India also to revive the relationship.”

He refused to confirm reports that suggested that Pakistan carried out airstrikes in Kabul that left the leader of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan dead and maintained that locals complained of “some noise but did not witness any attack”.

Better trade ties

Mr. Muttaqi urged greater trade ties with India and said attempts should be made to strengthen trade through Pakistani territory, especially through the Wagah border saying that trade through Wagah is economically viable for Afghans. “India and Pakistan should not shut Wagah as it provides a cheap route to us,” said Mr. Muttaqi, who also called for India to use the Iranian port of Chabahar.

“There are some obstacles on Chabahar because of U.S. sanctions. But these obstacles should be removed. In the past one year, India-Afghanistan trade has crossed $1 billion, so you can imagine how much trade we can do if these obstacles are dealt with,” said Mr. Muttaqi.

He said that the Taliban will not hand over the Bagram airbase to the U.S. as being demanded by President Donald Trump and said, “history is witness” that the people of Afghanistan do not appreciate the presence of foreign troops on their soil.

“Afghanistan has attained independence after four decades and everyone should support our free existence,” said Mr. Muttaqi in the press interaction that drew sharp criticism online for being “all male” and for excluding women reporters. Several women journalists who reached the Afghan embassy were seen sitting outside the premises and were not allowed to enter.

“The condition of women under Taliban has improved just like the overall law and order situation. If the women would have disapproved our rules, they would have come out in protest,” said Mr. Muttaqi, answering a question while describing criticism of the Taliban on gender issues as “international propaganda”.

There were dramatic moments before the press conference when officials accompanying Mr. Muttaqi were challenged by representatives of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan who continue to run the affairs of the Afghan embassy in Delhi. The embassy officials objected when Mr. Muttaqi’s companions removed the flag of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan that was overthrown by Taliban in August 2021.

“This is not a Taliban embassy yet and we will not allow your flag here,” said one of the staff members as he prevented the use of a large black-white flag of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. However, the Taliban team came ready with a small table-top flag that Mr. Muttaqi placed before him while addressing the media.

Earlier, the Taliban’s flag was not used during Mr. Muttaqi’s meeting with Mr. Jaishankar in Hyderabad House as, despite the high-level engagement, India is yet to formally recognise the Taliban. Mr. Muttaqi, however, promised to send Taliban diplomats to the Afghan embassy in Delhi and said, “First we will send our diplomats and slowly we will upgrade.”

Mr. Muttaqi is scheduled to visit Darul Uloom in Deoband on Saturday (October 11, 2025) where he will hold meetings with students and teachers of the Islamic seminary.

Published – October 10, 2025 11:55 pm IST

Dubai, United Arab Emirates:

A high-level meeting between the Afghan Taliban leadership and senior Indian officials was organised is Dubai on Wednesday. From India, foreign secretary Vikram Misri attended the meeting, while from Afghanistan the acting foreign minister of the Taliban government Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi was present.

The meeting assumes significance as New Delhi and Kabul aim to foster ties in order to enhance cooperation between the two countries. Though New Delhi has continued aiding Afghanistan in a limited capacity, much of its bilateral ties has remained dormant since the Taliban’s takeover in 2021.

The agenda for the meeting in Dubai was to boost bilateral ties between the two nations across varied sectors, including humanitarian aid, developmental assistance, trade, commerce, sports, cultural ties, regional security, and projects of national interest, such as the Chabahar Port in Iran, which acts as a key supply route for goods to reach Afghanistan. India and Afghanistan share a land border too, but that has remained cut-off by Pakistan-occupied Kashmir or PoK since 1947.

In the meeting India pledged further humanitarian support to Afghanistan. This included priority assistance in the healthcare sector, supply of medicines, and rehabilitation of refugees. New Delhi has so far dispatched several shipments consisting of 50,000 metric tonnes of wheat, 300 tonnes of medicines, 27 tonnes of earthquake relief aid, 40,000 litres of pesticides, 100 million polio doses, 1.5 million doses of the Covid vaccine, 11,000 units of hygiene kits for the drug de-addiction programme, 500 units of winter clothing and 1.2 tonnes of stationery kits, over the past few years.

The Afghan Minister appreciated and thanked the Indian leadership for continuing to engage and support the people of Afghanistan.

New Delhi has also conveyed to Kabul its readiness to respond to the urgent developmental needs of the Afghan people. “In view of the current need for development activities, it was decided that India would consider engaging in development projects in the near future,” the foreign ministry said.

As talks progressed, Afghanistan’s foreign minister underlined Kabul’s sensitivities to India’s regional security concerns and assured full cooperation in this regard. According to a press statement “It was also agreed to promote the use of Chabahar port for supporting trade and commercial activities, including for the purpose of humanitarian assistance for Afghanistan.”

Mr Misri also underscored the importance India gives to its historic, civilisational, and cultural ties with Afghanistan. “The foreign secretary underlined India’s historic friendship with the Afghan people and the strong people-to-people contacts between the two countries,” the foreign ministry said.

Foreign Secy @VikramMisri met Acting Foreign Minister of Afghanistan Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi in Dubai today.

Both sides discussed ’s ongoing humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, bilateral issues and security situation in the region. India reiterated its commitment to… pic.twitter.com/a3UyuIqkAG

— Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) January 8, 2025

Sports, especially cricket, which is loved in both countries also figured in the talks. Both sides agreed to strengthen sporting ties.

Wednesday’s meeting between the two sides comes two days after New Delhi severely condemned the recent Pakistani airstrikes in Afghanistan that killed 46 people, including several women and children. The Pakistani air strikes were carried out on December 24. It invited massive criticism and a stern warning from the Afghan government.

Pakistani air strikes hit Barmal district in Afghanistan’s Paktika province. This was the second time in 2024 that Islamabad directly targeted “civilian areas” in Afghanistan, said the government in Kabul. In March 2024 too, a similar air strike by Pakistan had killed eight people, including three children.

On Monday, India strongly condemned Pakistan over the air strikes, saying it is Islamabad’s “old practice” to blame its neighbours for its failures within the country. “We have noted the media reports on airstrikes on Afghan civilians, including women and children, in which several precious lives have been lost. We unequivocally condemn any attack on innocent civilians. It is an old practice of Pakistan to blame its neighbours for its own internal failures. We have also noted the response of an Afghan spokesperson in this regard,” India’s foreign ministry said.

The Taliban, a predominantly Pashtun tribe which has a large presence across Afghanistan, is an ultra-conservative political and religious hardliner group. It refers to itself by its state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. The Taliban which was the government in Afghanistan in 1996, was overthrown by the US-led military coalition in 2001 after Washington launched its ‘war against terror’ focusing on the Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden. Twenty years later, in 2021, when the US military left Afghanistan abruptly, the Afghan Taliban swept across the nation and regained its political importance by forming the government in the war-torn country.