Afghanistan crisis can not be seen in isolation, says PM Modi in Italy

PM Modi said any form of intimidation or threat that would emerge out of Afghanistan is something that the international community would have to watch out very carefully for.

PM Narendra Modi interacted with members of the Indian community in Italy on 30 October 2021 | Twitter/@PMOIndia

Rome: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said here that the situation in Afghanistan could not be seen in isolation and that the international community would have to watch out very carefully against any form of intimidation or threat emerging out of the war-torn country.

Prime Minister Modi, in his first in-person meeting with his Italian counterpart Mario Draghi on the sidelines of the G20 Summit, pointed out that the root causes of the problems in Afghanistan were really had to be looked into, which are essentially radicalism, extremism and terrorism, and the consequence of this had to be very, very carefully examined, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said during a press conference.

The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan on August 15, two weeks before the US’ complete troop withdrawal on August 31 after a costly two-decade war.

The Prime Minister was quite categoric that the situation in Afghanistan could not be seen in isolation, he said.

Modi said that the failure and inability to provide good governance, the failure to be able to deal with the situation as it stands had to also be a subject of introspection, Shringla said.

The Prime Minister said that any form of intimidation or threat that would emerge out of Afghanistan is something that the international community would have to watch out very carefully for, the official said.

There was a strong sentiment on Afghanistan which is fully understood both by partners in the European Union and in Italy, Shringla said, adding that both the Prime Ministers reciprocated those sentiments and felt that this is something that needed to be looked into.

He said that the emphasis is also on the humanitarian situation and the Italian Prime Minister referred to his efforts during the G20 Summit in Afghanistan to mobilise support to ensure that the people of Afghanistan did not suffer as a consequence of the current situation.

Prime Minister Modi also pointed out that there should be a distinction between those who govern and those who are people in Afghanistan and that people had to be offered humanitarian assistance, Shringla said.

He further said that there is a need to ensure that there is direct, unimpeded access of that humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, the official added.