India closely monitoring situation in Afghanistan: MEA
Aug 27, 2021
New Delhi [India], August 27 : India is closely monitoring the situation in Afghanistan and is in touch with other countries as well, the Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson said on Friday as over 100 people were killed in Kabul blasts on Thursday.
"We are monitoring the situation in Afghanistan and are in touch with other countries especially the US as they are operating the Kabul airport," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said during a weekly briefing on Friday.
He added, "We have been seeking a peaceful, prosperous and democratic Afghanistan. We are currently monitoring it closely. The current focus is on the security situation of Afghanistan evacuations and seeing how it unfolds. Other countries are in the frame of wait and watch."
He also said the Kabul attacks are a matter of concern and expressed condolences over the casualties.
Over the recognition of the Taliban as government, Bagchi said, "The situation on the ground is uncertain (in Afghanistan). The primary concern is the security and safety of people. Currently, there is no clarity about any entity forming a government in Kabul. I think we are jumping the gun regarding recognition."
Asked about the evacuations from Afghanistan, Bagchi said so far India has evacuated over 550 people in six separate flights, either from Kabul or Tajikistan's capital Dushanbe, of these, over 260 were Indians.
New Delhi also facilitated the evacuation of Indian nationals through other agencies and are in touch with various countries, like US, Tajikistan, Iran and others.