Amir Khan Muttaki, the Foreign Minister of the Taliban ruling Afghanistan, is visiting India from October 9 to 16. Muttaki’s visit to India is being considered important for the relations and trade cooperation between the two countries. The Afghan Foreign Minister has also said that, ‘Trade between India and Afghanistan will be increased.’ During Muttaki’s visit to India, it was also announced to resume flights from the Afghan capital Amritsar to Kabul.
Regarding his visit to India, Muttaki said, ‘We hope that our visit will have a positive impact on India-Afghanistan relations… Our trade with India is more than 1 billion… It is good that the government and the Prime Minister have decided to upgrade the Technical Mission in Kabul to the level of an embassy… There are countless opportunities for work in Afghanistan.’
Muttaki further said, ‘For the first time in 45 years, there has been absolute peace in Afghanistan. Due to this peace, people from all over the world are coming here for diplomatic purposes. Everyone is happy.’
The Afghan Foreign Minister also commented on the recent tensions with Pakistan, saying, ‘Afghanistan does not want war. Apart from Pakistan, we have five neighboring countries, but they are happy with us. We do not want war, we want peace.’
To understand how and why the fighting started, it is important to first understand the border dispute between Pakistan and Afghanistan. The two countries share a 2,460-kilometer border known as the Durand Line. This line was drawn during the British era, which Afghanistan does not recognize.
Since the Taliban came to power, the infiltration of terrorists through this border has increased. Pakistan frequently attacks terrorists. To this end, Pakistan frequently violates Afghan airspace, which angers the Taliban regime.
