New Delhi, February 03: Afghan President Hamid Karzai arrived in the Indian capital on Wednesday to discuss efforts to restore security in Afghanistan and to attend a conference on sustainable development. Karzai will meet with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today (Thursday) to update him about security and reconstruction in Afghanistan, where India has had a growing influence.
Last month, Indian Foreign Minister SM Krishna, visited Kabul, and called the security situation there disturbing, pledging that India would help in reconstruction and promised a donation of 100,000 tonnes of wheat. During Karzai’s two-day visit, he will also meet with President Pratibha Patil and will join the leaders of the Dominican Republic and the Seychelles in giving speeches at New Delhi’s first international Sustainable Development Summit.
The summit, being organised by the Energy Research Institute, is meant to facilitate an exchange of ideas and lessons learned from local environmental projects. It is also being attended by activists, economists, academics and the top UN climate official, Christiana Figueres. Karzai leaves on Thursday evening for Munich, Germany. ap
–Agencies