Afghan peace push: Russia to allay Indian concerns

KABUL (Pajhwok): Russia will have a shot at assuaging India’s concerns about the ongoing peace process in Afghanistan, a media report said on Thursday.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Special Envoy for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov were scheduled to visit India next week, The Times of India reported.

Lavrov would meet his Indian counterpart S. Jaishankar besides calling on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The visit is expected to pave the ground for President Putin’s summit with Modi in New Delhi later in the year.

The newspaper quoted unnamed diplomatic sources as saying another round of “sincere and forward-looking” talks on Afghanistan would take place between the two countries.

“Kabulov is expected to brief Indian authorities about the progress made in the March 18 meeting hosted by Moscow among Russia, US, China and Pakistan,” the report added.

The so-called troika meeting focused on making progress in the intra-Afghan process to reach a negotiated settlement and and a comprehensive ceasefire.

Moscow reportedly kept India out of the March 18 meeting of the extended troika despite the US having included India in a fresh peace initiative to convene a UN-led conference in Turkey on Afghanistan.

While backing global efforts for peace in Afghanistan, India remains concerned about the role of Pakistan’s intelligence service and its influence over the Taliban.

PAN Monitor/mud

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