Indian FM, Taliban Commerce Minister Discuss Expanding Trade & Connectivity

He said a broad national consensus must be built through extensive internal and external discussions.

Ghani said he is prepared to play a role in helping Afghanistan move out of its current crisis if the Afghan people desire it. He described the country as being in an extremely sensitive historical moment, marked by both dangers and opportunities.

In a post on X on Thursday, Ghani said Afghans were caught between hope and despair, trust and mistrust, and competing paths forward. He said the public was calling for an urgent and fundamental dialogue to clarify the boundaries of national interest and pave the way for consensus.

He argued that Afghanistan needs a serious national discourse to define its goals, including how the country should re-establish its relations with the international community.

Ghani described Afghanistan’s situation as dire, citing mass deportations of Afghan refugees, devastating earthquakes and natural disasters, and Pakistani military strikes on Afghan territory. He said Afghans must take immediate steps to address the crisis.

He wrote that if Afghans choose to build a shared future, they must prepare the ground for broad participation and consensus. He said the country’s survival depends on mutual acceptance, lasting peace and a balance between transformation and continuity.

Ghani said Afghans must also decide whether their focus will be on the future or the past, asking how both should be balanced and whether the country will move forward or remain “stuck looking backward.”

He argued that sustainable peace is essential for national sovereignty and future legitimacy, saying lasting peace and legitimate governance are prerequisites for stability, security, economic development, public welfare and international recognition. He noted that Afghans have been deprived of these rights for 47 years.

Ghani has previously called for a national Loya Jirga to discuss Afghanistan’s political future, arguing that the country cannot progress in isolation. Without naming the Taliban, he has said their reliance on international aid shows they cannot govern the country alone.

He expressed hope that he would one day be able to transfer the “trust of legitimacy” given to him by the Afghan people to a rightful and capable political system.

Ghani added that he seeks nothing for himself, and said that if the Afghan people require it, he is ready to contribute to overcoming the crisis and offering constructive solutions.

Karzai said Afghan children would only secure a bright future and contribute to the country’s progress if they were given the chance to gain knowledge, expertise and essential skills. In a post on X on Thursday, he said education was not only the right of every child but a necessity for society.

He added that meaningful national growth and development would only be achieved if serious attention were given to educating children and preparing them as a skilled and knowledgeable workforce for Afghanistan’s future.

Since returning to power, the Taliban have barred girls from attending schools above the sixth grade and have closed universities to female students, measures that have drawn widespread national and international condemnation.

Karzai has repeatedly called on the Taliban to lift the bans and reopen educational institutions for girls.

He also stressed the importance of resolving internal disputes and ensuring clerics and officials adhere to organisational regulations.

Hamidullah Fitrat, the Taliban’s deputy spokesperson, said on Wednesday that a two-day seminar for officials, members and clerics from Sharia councils across the country had been held in Kandahar.

According to the Taliban statement, Akhundzada told participants that responsibility for guiding the public now rested with clerics and that they were expected to lead society in accordance with Sharia principles.

He urged Taliban members to avoid internal disagreements and to prioritise resolving people’s problems. He also instructed clerics to explain religious rulings and their significance to the public.

Addressing the gathering, Akhundzada reportedly said clerics and officials were expected to serve as role models for ordinary people and to promote reform within society and government. He told them that they must first implement the decrees in their own lives so that the public could follow their example.

The agreement enables Afghan goods to be transported to international markets by sea.

Al-Emarah, one of the Taliban’s official media outlets, reported on Wednesday that the deal was concluded on the sidelines of a “trade connectivity” meeting attended by Taliban officials and representatives from Iran, Uzbekistan and India.

The agreement comes as the Taliban have severed trade and transit ties with Pakistan and are seeking alternative corridors, particularly through Iran, to sustain exports. Earlier, the Taliban’s minister of industry and commerce travelled to Iran to participate in a joint economic forum.

The Taliban are working to shift Afghanistan’s trade routes away from Pakistan’s ports, including Karachi, and towards Iran’s Chabahar and Bandar Abbas ports. Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban’s deputy prime minister for economic affairs, recently urged Afghan traders to adopt alternative routes to reach regional and international markets.

Iran has welcomed the growing commercial engagement. Alireza Bikdeli, Iran’s ambassador in Kabul, said Tehran now stands with the Taliban more firmly than ever in advancing economic objectives and described Iran as a “reliable partner” with significant transit, commercial and agricultural capacity.

According to Iranian media, Momeni told reporters on the sidelines of a cabinet meeting that border security remained stable and that overall national security indicators had improved compared with last year. He said Iran was not “anti-migrant” but argued that the country’s resources were insufficient to support larger numbers.

Momeni said in September that Iran planned to deport around two million additional Afghan migrants by the end of the current solar year.

Human rights groups and accounts from local sources and eyewitnesses indicate that the Islamic Republic has expelled tens of thousands of Afghan migrants without due legal process, often using threats, beatings and forced transfers to detention camps before returning them to Afghanistan.

UN experts warn that returning migrants face severe challenges in Afghanistan, including lack of access to education, a deepening humanitarian crisis, acute food shortages and rapidly deteriorating living conditions.