The White House on Tuesday said it does not indulge in cash transactions in Afghanistan and all its assistance to the war-torn country is accountable to the Congress, after Afghan President Hamid Karzai had said that he received "bags of cash" from Iran and the United States.
"That has its own significance of resolving our problems between Pakistan and Afghanistan, misunderstanding between Pakistan and Afghanistan," Musharraf said.
Special US Representative for Pakistan and Afghanistan Richard Holbrooke will be travelling to Europe to consult leaders in Germany, France and Russia, before proceeding to Kabul to attend the inauguration of Hamid Karzai for his second term as Afghanistan's president.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told the Parliament on Friday that the "cowardly act" on February 26 in Kabul "will not bend our determination to help Afghanistan".
The Taliban had promised an 'inclusive' government that represents Afghanistan's complex ethnic makeup, but there is no Hazara member in the cabinet.
Life has come a full circle for Pakistani cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who arrived in Kabul on Wednesday on a two-day visit, discussed cooperation in the field of security and developmental projects with President Hamid Karzai and Foreign Minister Rangin Dafdar Spanta.
American Senator John F Kerry, chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, who just returned from a trip to Afghanistan after twisting Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai's arm to acquiesce to hold a run-off election after charges of massive fraud and corruption were uncovered in the recent election, has warned that Pakistan could become the epicenter of terrorism in the world, since it is now the headquarters of the Al Qaeda.
The Centre on Saturday ruled out the possibility of holding talks with the Taliban and said that New Delhi will only be dealing with the legitimate government led by President Hamid Karzai.India believes that Taliban is the 'antagonist and not the protagonist' and is also aware of its collusion with the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Tayiba, said sources. The LeT and the Taliban are specifically targeting Indians and Indian interests in the war-torn country, said sources.
"I do not think that India has been squeezed out. I think India is playing a stellar role in rebuilding Afghanistan which has been acknowledged by the people of Afghanistan and by the legitimate Government of Afghanistan, and that is what matters," Krishna said in an interview to Karan Thapar for Devil's Advocate.
At least three gunmen, all reported to be members of the Taliban, stormed a central Kabul bank on Wednesday morning, and are currently surrounded by police.
Afghanistan elects a new president on August 20 against the background of horrific violence.
A number of world leaders, including British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, on Friday called up Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to express their solidarity with India in the wake of the deadly terror attacks in Mumbai.Besides Brown, other leaders to call up Singh included Afghan President Hamid Karzai, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Mauritian Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam.
As United States President Barack Obama is about to finalise his new policy on Afghanistan, his envoy to the country has expressed his misgivings about sending more troops to the war-torn nation and raised questions on the capability of Hamid Karzai as head of the state.The two strongly worded classified cables, sent to Obama last week, were believed to have been discussed by Obama with his key national security and defence aides at the White House on Wednesday.
Among other things, presidents Pervez Musharraf and Hamid Karzai also discussed the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan- Pakistan gas pipeline project.
External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said India will continue to extend all support to the Afghanistan as a contiguous neighbour, in a clear reference that the Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir belongs to India.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on friday that Taliban leader Mullah Omar is not interested in peace talks or the reconciliation efforts of Afghan President Hamid Karzai. "I do not expect Mullah Omar and those people to be at all interested in this. In fact, they've made it very clear that they're not," Clinton told CNN.
India has completed the construction of the 218-km Zaranj-Delaram Highway in South-Western Afghanistan despite attacks by Taliban and the loss of precious lives of Indian nationals working on the project.
A total of six Indians, including a Border Roads Organisation driver and four ITBP soldiers, and 129 Afghans were killed in these attacks. The 215-km long Delaram-Zaranj highway, a symbol of India's developmental work in the war-ravaged country, was handed over to Afghan authorities by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee in the presence of Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Foreign Minister Rangeen Dadfar Spanta.
There has been a sharp increase in acts of terrorism in Afghanistan since the new Pakistan government assumed office in Islamabad in March.
Like China, India too should connect the dots and move ahead with a long-term perspective in Afghanistan, advises Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
US President George W Bush said during his first visit to Afghanistan Wednesday that he was confident Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden would be brought to justice.
Pakistan is reportedly lobbying for new government in Kabul without Hamid Karzai as president.
"They've got elections coming up, but effectively the national government (led by Hamid Karzai) seems very detached from what's going on in the surrounding community," Obama said, clearly expressing his displeasure over the functioning of the Afghan President, considered close to former President George W Bush.
Terming the Kabul embassy bombing an attack on the Indo-Afghan friendship, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday declared that it would not deter New Delhi from continuing its reconstruction of the war-torn country and announced a fresh assistance worth $450 mn for it.
'I am committed to my country if there is respect for democracy and human rights. If not possible then I will prefer to stay in India or any other western country'
'India has to ensure its borders are properly sealed and there is no infiltration from PoK.
The Democratic Senator with Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
Pakistan has too much at stake to allow even an iota of rapprochement between India and the Taliban, says Vivek Gumaste.
India named a road in the national capital after the slain Afghan war hero, Ahmad Shah Massoud, the first such honour extended to a leader from that country.
Despite dependence on the ISI for years of sustenance, Taliban leaders may harbour resentment over the ISI's excessive control, notes Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at the Research and Analysis Wing.
B S Prakash takes a tongue-in-cheek look at what India's neighbours think about the proposal of a SAARC satellite.
India on Tuesday said the inclusion of Afghanistan in South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation would go a long way in establishing lasting peace and stability in the region.
Karzai warned Pakistan that Afghanistan was no longer weak.
Kenzo Oshima led a 10-member mission to Afghanistan earlier this month.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai made a fervent appeal to international forces in Afghanistan to stay the course, because the "job is not over".
'Polls have shown that about 70% of Afghans are waiting to see which side to pick - the US/NATO forces or the Taliban.'
In all, about 290 Indians are engaged in various projects in Afghanistan.
In a video found on Islamist websites late Wednesday, Osama bin Laden's deputy called all Afghans, particularly students in universities and schools in Kabul, to take on the foreign 'infidels' in Afghanistan.
