‘Afghan talks should not undermine state legitimacy’

India on Tuesday supported Afghanistan's reconciliation process with the Taliban, but warned that it must not undermine the legitimacy of the Afghan government and should be within the internationally accepted ‘red lines.’

‘We support the efforts made by the government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to establish a peaceful dialogue with all armed opposition groups,’ external affairs minister Salman Khurshid said in his intervention at 20th ASEANRegional Forum (ARF) meeting here on Tuesday.

‘But this must be a broad based Afghan-led Afghan-owned reconciliation process, within the framework of the Afghan constitution and internationally accepted red lines. This dialogue must involve all sections of the Afghan society and armed opposition groups, including the Taliban,’ he said. agencies