No plan to shut embassy in Kabul: India
NEW DELHI: India on Thursday ruled out immediate closure of its embassy in Afghanistan amid the rapid deterioration of the security situation and said it continued to be engaged with all stakeholders to work for a comprehensive ceasefire and a political settlement.
Rapid advances made by the Taliban in recent days, including the capture of nine provincial capitals and fresh attacks on Kandahar and Herat on Thursday, have sharpened security concerns in New Delhi.
The Indian government is keeping a close eye on the situation and plans have been drawn up to deal with all contingencies, people familiar with developments said on condition of anonymity.
External affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi dismissed the possibility of any immediate closure of the Indian mission in Kabul but acknowledged that the rapidly evolving security situation across Afghanistan was “of concern”.
“We are monitoring the situation very carefully but there are no plans as such (to close the embassy),” Bagchi told a regular media briefing.
India evacuated some 50 officials and security officials from its consulate in the northern city of Mazar-e-Sharif early on Wednesday against the backdrop of Taliban fighters making rapid advances in the region. The move came exactly a month after it evacuated a similar number of personnel from the consulate in southern Kandahar city.
The people cited above ruled out any immediate evacuation of officials from Kabul, saying that the government was preparing for all eventualities, including the possible rapid withdrawal of diplomats and Indian nationals.
India again asks nationals to leave Afghanistan in advisory
The Indian embassy in Kabul on Thursday again advised Indians in Afghanistan to return home in view of the deteriorating security situation, saying three engineers who remained at a project site not controlled by Afghan forces had required an “emergency air rescue”.
People familiar with developments said on condition of anonymity that the three engineers were at a dam site in a Taliban controlled area. Further details of the emergency air rescue, such as the area and when it was carried out, could not immediately be ascertained.