In First, Jaishankar Speaks to Taliban Foreign Minister, Thanks for Condemning J&K Attack
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday had a telephonic conversation with Taliban’s acting Foreign Minister, Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi, marking the first formal political-level contact between India and the Taliban regime since it seized power in 2021.
Jaishankar appreciated the Taliban’s condemnation of the Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir, which claimed 26 lives and was linked to Pakistan-backed groups. The minister also acknowledged Afghanistan’s rejection of “false and baseless” reports attempting to sow distrust between the two nations.
“Welcomed his firm rejection of recent attempts to create distrust between India and Afghanistan through false and baseless reports,” Jaishankar posted on X, without directly referring to recent claims in Pakistani media accusing India of orchestrating a “false flag” operation.
In his conversation, Jaishankar reiterated India’s “traditional friendship” with the Afghan people and reaffirmed New Delhi’s commitment to their development needs.
He also discussed “ways and means of taking cooperation forward” with the Taliban leadership, signalling a cautious yet pragmatic shift in India’s engagement with the Kabul regime.
The call came shortly after India’s special envoy Anand Prakash visited Kabul to meet Muttaqi. The visit focused on enhancing trade, transit ties, and discussing recent regional tensions following Operation Sindoor.
In a rare move, the Taliban government condemned the May 7 Pahalgam attack — believed to be orchestrated by Pakistan-based terrorists — a gesture seen by New Delhi as a significant step in countering cross-border terror.
The condemnation was followed by official meetings between Indian and Afghan representatives, with Kabul expressing interest in building economic and political bridges with India.
This is the first political-level engagement between the two sides since the Taliban’s takeover in August 2021. While India has not formally recognised the Taliban regime, it reopened its embassy in Kabul with a technical team in June 2022.
The last such political-level contact occurred more than two decades ago, when then-External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh held talks with Taliban leaders in 1999–2000 during the IC-814 hijacking crisis. Earlier this year, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri also held a low-profile meeting with Muttaqi in Dubai
