India on Thursday expressed appreciation for Afghanistan’s dismissal of efforts aimed at sowing discord between the two nations, as External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar held his first official conversation with the Taliban’s acting Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi. Jaishankar also thanked Muttaqi for strongly condemning the recent terror attack in Pahalgam.

During their phone call, Jaishankar emphasized the longstanding bond between India and the Afghan people, reaffirming New Delhi’s commitment to supporting Afghanistan’s development goals.

In a post on X, Jaishankar shared, “Welcomed his firm rejection of recent attempts to create distrust between India and Afghanistan through false and baseless reports.” Though he didn’t specify, his remarks appeared to counter claims from Pakistani media suggesting India had orchestrated a “false flag” operation in Pahalgam with Taliban involvement.

The Taliban government, which India has not formally recognised, had previously issued a strong condemnation of the Pahalgam attack, in which 26 civilians were killed by terrorists linked to Pakistan.

Describing the exchange as a “good conversation,” Jaishankar wrote, “Deeply appreciate his condemnation of the Pahalgam terrorist attack.” He added that the dialogue included ways to enhance cooperation, stressing India’s traditional friendship with the Afghan people and continued development assistance.

This interaction follows days after India and Pakistan agreed to a ceasefire after Operation Sindoor, which was launched in response to the Pahalgam incident and garnered support from Kabul.

Shortly after the attack, India dispatched special envoy Anand Prakash, who heads the Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan Division at the Ministry of External Affairs, to Kabul. There, he held meetings with Muttaqi to discuss improving political relations, trade and transit connectivity, and regional issues.

Jaishankar’s call marks the first minister-level engagement between India and the Taliban regime since the group took control of Kabul in August 2021. Earlier this year, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri had met Muttaqi in Dubai, but that meeting did not occur at the ministerial level.

Prior to this, the last known political contact between New Delhi and the Taliban was over two decades ago—when then-External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh communicated with Taliban Foreign Minister Wakil Ahmed Muttawakil during the 1999 hijacking of Indian Airlines flight IC-814.