India reminds world of Taliban reintegration red lines

KABUL - Warning the world of the dangers of pursuing a selective approach towards terrorism, India Tuesday backed the reintegration plan of the Afghan government but on the condition that the Taliban cuts off link with terrorism and accepts the Afghan constitution.

“India also supports Afghanistan’s efforts towards peace and reintegration. But, for such an effort to succeed, it must be fully Afghan-led and Afghan-owned and carry all sections of Afghanistan’s population together,” India’s External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna said at the Kabul conference on the future of Afghanistan.

The process, Krishna reminded the international community, should abide by the red lines agreed to at the London conference. These include giving up violence, cutting off all links with terrorism - whether jehadi or state-sponsored - and accepting the democratic and pluralistic values of the Afghan constitution, including women’s rights.

Foreign ministers and representatives of over 60 countries and international organisations are participating in the conference, the largest gathering of international leaders in Afghanistan since the 1970s.

Krishna warned of the dangers of double standards in dealing with terrorism.

“The international community should also ensure that there is no selectivity in dealing with terrorism. Terrorism cannot be compartmentalised.

“As President Karzai said today, it is the vicious common enemy we face. Today, one cannot distinguish between Al Qaeda and plethora of terrorist organisations which have imbibed the goals and techniques of Al Qaeda.

“It is, therefore, essential to ensure that support, sustenance and sanctuaries for terrorist organisations from outside Afghanistan are ended forthwith,” he said in a reference to the alleged support to the Afghan Taliban from across the border in Pakistan.

Against reports of a Pakistan-backed move to accommodate an anti-India militant group called the Haqqani network in the emerging power structure in Afghanistan, Krishna stressed that any peace process must be transparent and inclusive.

He said: “The international community must learn lessons from past experiences at negotiating with fundamentalist and extremist organisations and ensure that any peace process is conducted in an inclusive and transparent manner.”