Washington: India and the US on Monday (local time) called on the Taliban to abide by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution to ensure that the Afghan territory does not become a breeding ground for terrorists to launch attacks against any country.

In a joint statement issued on the India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue between External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin held on April 11 in Washington, the two sides called on the Taliban adhere to the UNSC Resolution 2593 (2021) that demands that Afghan territory must never again be used to threaten or attack any country or shelter or train terrorists or plan or finance terrorist attacks.

The ministers also urged the Taliban to adhere to these and all other commitments with respect to the human rights of all Afghans, including women, children, and members of minority groups, and uphold freedom of travel.

They also emphasized the importance of an inclusive Afghan government and unhindered access for the United Nations and its implementing partners to deliver humanitarian assistance. The minister reiterated their commitment to close consultations on Afghanistan to help facilitate an inclusive and peaceful future for all Afghans.

India and US also called for the cessation of violence in Myanmar, the release of all those arbitrarily detained, and a swift return to the path of democracy and inclusive governance. They also called for urgent implementation of the "ASEAN Five Point Consensus".

Acknowledging India's distinguished history of leading peacekeeping missions, the US welcomed India's commitment to participate in multilateral peacekeeping training in 2022, expand joint-capacity building efforts with third-country partners, and launch a new joint National Investigation Officers Training of trainers course in partnership with the United Nations.

Notably, during the India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue, the defence and foreign ministers of the two countries forged new and deeper cooperation across the breadth of the US-India partnership, including defence, science and technology, trade, climate, public health, and people-to-people ties.