Urging Afghanistan and the international community not to lose hope and heart, India’s permanent representative to the United Nations, Syed Akbaruddin, welcomed the adoption of resolution 2405 (2018), extending the mandate of United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan by a period of one year through 17 March 2019.

He praised the Afghan government’s willingness for dialogue with the Taliban while warning that those who continue violence will not be tolerated.

“Any violence needs a robust response. The irreconcilable guns need to be silenced,” he said.

Underlining the hold Taliban has in the country which has increased the cultivation of poppy in the areas under its control, Akbaruddin expressed hope the Security Council will be able to “better utilise the range of tools available to it to deal with these trans-national networks of drugs, terrorism and crime”.

Without naming Pakistan, Akbaruddin urged the international community and the UN to address the threat to Afghanistan and the region from terror organisations which enjoy safe havens in countries which have not been “deterred”.

“Despite the international community’s efforts, those supporting the terrorists affecting Afghanistan have not been deterred,” Akbaruddin said, adding that “there are still those who provide sanctuaries to terrorist organisations like the Taliban, Haqqani Network, ISIS, Al-Qaeda, LeT and JeM.”

Almost all of the terror groups named by the India’s permanent representative enjoy safe haven in Pakistan, which has been repeatedly called out by India, Afghanistan and the US over the issue.

Terrorist leaders such as LeT chief Hafiz Saeed openly hold rallies in Pakistan and exhort people to wage war against India. JeM chief Maulana Masood Azhar, whose organisation’s headquarters is located in Bahawalpur in Punjab province in Pakistan, is often provided security by the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

The terror groups have been involved in numerous attacks on India including the 10 February attack on Sunjuwan Military Station in Jammu.

Hailing Afghan government’s willingness for peace and stability, Akbaruddin reaffirmed India’s commitment to help in the reconstruction of Afghanistan and improve the lives of the Afghan populace.

“We will continue our work on the ground to help the women and girls of Afghanistan become self reliant and capable of playing an effective part in the reconstruction of the country,” he said.

On Thursday, 8 March, the Afghan government led by President Ashraf Ghani made a peace offer to Taliban.

United Nations envoy to Afghanistan Tadamichi Yamamoto urged the Taliban to accept the offer by so to bring to an end to more than 16 years of fighting.