NEW DELHI: The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday (August 19, 2021) over the chaotic situation in Afghanistan. Blinken and Jaishankar last spoke on Monday, the Taliban took control of Afghanistan on Sunday.
"Secretary Blinken and Minister Jaishankar discussed Afghanistan and agreed to continued coordination," State Department spokesperson Ned Price said in a readout of the call.
Taking to Twitter Blilnken wrote:
Productive call with @DrSJaishankar today about Afghanistan. We agreed to continue our close coordination.
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) August 20, 2021
Meanwhile, Blinken also got in touch with several Foreign Ministers on Thursday to discuss the Afghanistan situation. He held a videoconference with the Foreign Ministers of the G7 countries -- the UK, France, Japan, Germany, Italy, Canada -- and Joseph Borrell, the European Union`s High Representative for Foreign Affairs.
"All leaders underscored the imperative of safe passage for those who wish to leave Afghanistan and the need for an inclusive political resolution that protects the fundamental human rights of all Afghans," Price said in an official readout.
They also discussed counter-terrorism, humanitarian efforts, and refugee migration, he added.
While, Jaishankar was in New York for two days of UN Security Council programmes on protecting peacekeepers and fighting terrorism and was leaving the city on Thursday. The Taliban's sudden victory close to the heels of US withdrawing its troops from the country has sparked chaos.
America and other nations are scrambling to safely evacuate thousands of citizens and nationals of ally countries.
