India for elected political structure in Afghanistan before drawdown of US troops

NEW DELHI: India has conveyed to the US that it should not withdraw its troops from Afghanistan without putting in place an elected “political structure” to govern the country, official sources said on Saturday.

Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale met US Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad recently and apprised India’s views about drawdown of US troops from Afghanistan, they said.

The US has intensified its efforts in the past few months, including holding talks with the Taliban, to end the more than 17-year conflict in Afghanistan.

In the meeting with Khalilzad, Gokhale conveyed that India’s preference is for having an elected Government in Kabul and not an interim arrangement when the US withdraws its forces from the war-ravaged country, the sources said.

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