Karzai to push for more Indian investment
INDIA: Afghan President Hamid Karzai in talks with Indian
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday in New Delhi pressed for
increased investment in his country.
India has provided billions of dollars of aid to Afghanistan since
the fall of the Taliban in 2001, and is keen to protect against the
return of a radical Islamist regime in Kabul after international troops
pull out in 2014. But any Indian activity in Afghanistan triggers
sensitivities in neighbouring arch-rival Pakistan, which fears losing
influence in Afghanistan and being encircled.
In October last year, India and Afghanistan signed a “strategic
partnership” aimed at deepening security and economic links, with Karzai
keen to elevate India’s involvement further.
At a meeting on Saturday with business leaders in Mumbai, Karzai
promised a “red carpet” welcome for Indian investment as US-led NATO
forces prepare to withdraw.
“Indian businesses need not be shy while thinking about Afghanistan,”
he said. “Chinese businesses were there long before you came, five or
six years ago. “If you don’t arrive on the red carpet, it will get
dusty. Therefore, do hurry up in coming and take advantage of the
opportunities in Afghanistan.”
India has not contributed to the international coalition of forces
deployed in Afghanistan, but has worked on low-key troop and police
training as well as infrastructure development. The US was previously
wary of India’s presence in case it led to a “proxy war” with Pakistan
on Afghan territory, but US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta visiting New
Delhi in June encouraged India to play a more active role.
AFP
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