Afghan top diplomat on India trip, 1st since Taliban's return to power

Interim Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi on Thursday arrived in the Indian capital New Delhi for a week-long visit, officials said.

It is the first visit by any top Afghan diplomat since the Taliban's return to power in August 2021.

Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal confirmed the arrival of Muttaqi in Delhi, writing on US social media company X: "We look forward to engaging discussions with him on bilateral relations and regional issues."

Muttaqi has been granted an exemption by the UN Security Council Committee for travel to New Delhi, according to Jaiswal.

Muttaqi's visit to India will conclude on Oct. 16.

New Delhi closed its embassy in Kabul after the fall of the West-backed regime in Afghanistan, whose fall led to the return of the Taliban, now ruling the war-torn nation as an interim administration.

But the embassy resumed operations with a "technical team" in 2022, and recently has directly engaged with the interim administration.

Trade between Afghanistan and India climbed to $890 million last year.