External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday said that it is hard to take a “very definitive position” on Afghanistan as the situation there is still unfolding and there are “live issues” to consider, such as whether there will be an inclusive government in Kabul and whether Afghan soil will be used for terrorism in other countries.
In an interactive session at the India Today conclave, when asked about the spate of targeted killings in Kashmir and whether the Afghan developments could impact India’s internal situation, Mr Jaishankar said he would not like to draw certain connections with Afghanistan without any evidence.
About the possibility of resumption of dialogue with Pakistan, he said the prospect does not look good and asserted that there is no other situation in the world where a country actually runs “this kind of scale of terrorism” against its neighbours.
Referring to Pakistan, he said, “For me, a normal country is a country that does not sponsor terrorism against its neighbours. Right now the prospects do not look good.”
Asked about Islamabad’s support to various terror groups operating from Afghan soil, the External Affairs Minister said the role of Pakistan in what happened in Afghanistan is not a secret and it is very public now.
On the growing perception that the Pakistan spy agency succeeded in its design in Afghanistan and that what happened in Kabul was a strategic setback for India, Mr Jaishankar said New Delhi has to deal with whatever the situation is.
At the same time, he added that “sometimes, we all tend to make very sweeping sort of statements or judgements or assessments. I think the picture is a little more complex, more granular than that.”
“It has been less than two months since the Taliban took Afghanistan and it is quite obvious that things are far from settled even in Kabul. I would urge some patience, some deliberations and some caution,” he said.
