The Indian Minister of External Affairs, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, recently announced that India will maintain its embassy in Kabul, but it has not yet decided whether to send an ambassador to Afghanistan.
Speaking at the India International Center on Wednesday, Jaishankar stated that his country is closely monitoring the situation in Afghanistan, asserting that it is too early to judge the recent developments in the country.
“At this time in Afghanistan, we have what we had. So, we have decided that we would maintain an embassy not at an ambassador level yet.” Jaishankar said.
The Indian Minister of External Affairs further highlighted that many countries have sent back their ambassadors, but India will remain focused on providing humanitarian assistance to positively impact the lives of people in the country.
“That is broadly where we are at this stage, but how do we go further, I think we will have to wait and see,” noted Jaishankar. “We can’t necessarily say I’ll work with a regime I like, we can’t be unrealistic about what has happened in Afghanistan.”
Following the Taliban’s takeover in August 2021, India closed its embassy and consulates in Afghanistan and withdrew its diplomats due to security concerns.
However, India’s Ministry of External Affairs recently sent a technical team to Afghanistan to “monitor the situation” and explore how New Delhi could support the people of Afghanistan.
