India&rsquo;s evolving diplomatic relationship with Afghanistan is on its way to being written into the pages of history as Indian External Affair Minister S. Jaishankar had the first ever conversation with Taliban&rsquo;s acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi on Tuesday, over phone. The conversation followed the Taliban government&rsquo;s, which is yet to be officially announced by Indian government, condemnation of Pahalgam terror attack, claiming lives of 26 innocent tourists.&nbsp;
In a social media post on X, Jaishankar stated that &ldquo;Good conversation with Acting Afghan Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi this evening. Deeply appreciate his condemnation of the Pahalgam terrorist attack.&rdquo; Answering the false accusation of linking Taliban to Pahalgam attack he said that &ldquo;Welcomed his firm rejection of recent attempts to create distrust between India and Afghanistan through false and baseless reports&rdquo; of Pakistan. 
Hafiz Zia Ahmed, Taliban&rsquo;s Director of communication posted that Mr. Muttaqi have asked Dr. Jaishankar to help us get more visa specially for Afghanistan people with medical need. Further he also stated that they talked on the matter of bilateral trade and development and development of Chabahar Port in Iran. He also requested Indian government to free Afghan prison from Indian Jail and return them to Afghanistan. He also shared series of topic that was discussed between them, in Pashto language. The Chabahar Port has become more important now because India and Pakistan have stopped all trade and closed their border posts after the Pahalgam terror attack. This affects Afghanistan, which is a landlocked country and depends on land routes through Pakistan to trade with India. Although India and Afghanistan share a land border, it has been blocked since 1947 because of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). So, the only other way for trade between India and Afghanistan is through the Chabahar Port in Iran. 
India and the Taliban government have been working to strengthen their ties since August 2021, after the Taliban came to power following the withdrawal of U.S. forces. Over time, several diplomatic meetings have taken place to promote cooperation, with a focus on peace and the well-being of the Afghan people. These talks have continued into this year to build a friendly relationship. On April 27, amid rising tensions between India and Pakistan over cross-border terrorism, senior Indian diplomat Anand Prakash visited Afghanistan and held a meeting with Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi.&nbsp;
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EAM S. Jaishankar & Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi (File Photo)

Jaishankar, Taliban Minister discussed India-Afghan ties, visa requests, and Afghan prisoners release

EAM Jaishankar Holds Talks with Taliban Minister

Jaishankar, Taliban Minister discussed India-Afghan ties, visa requests, and Afghan prisoners release

May 16, 2025 | 17:53 IST