India and Afghanistan will discuss issues of bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest during the two-day visit of President Hamid Karzai here.
Mr. Karzai arrives here on April 26 on the invitation of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and leaves the following day to attend the SAARC Summit at Thimpu, Bhutan.
“President Karzai's visit carries forward the sequence of high-level interaction between the two countries and would contribute to strengthening the strategic partnership between India and Afghanistan,” the Ministry of External Affairs said here.
It said the visit also provided an opportunity for India to express its firm commitment and support to the government and people of Afghanistan as “they build a peaceful, democratic, pluralistic and prosperous Afghanistan.”
The Prime Minister is expected to convey India's concern over the Taliban targeting Indians in that country. “We are constantly vigilant and seized of the matter,” Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao said here on Thursday when asked about reports of fresh security threats to Indians in Afghanistan.
On Wednesday, the government told Parliament that 17 Indians have been killed in Afghanistan since 2008 and that it has no plans to scale down its operations there. The government has comprehensively reviewed and enhanced security measures for the safety of its personnel and other Indians working there.
During March this year, National Security Adviser Shiv Shankar Menon visited Kabul to discuss the issue with Afghanistan leaders following the February attack on residential accommodation in which seven Indians were killed.
