Afghanistan's Acting FM Rabbani to hold talks with PM Modi

Afghanistan's acting foreign minister Salahuddin Rabbani will hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj in New Delhi on Monday.

Rabbani is expected to renew Afghanistan's demand for greater Indian involvement in the war-ravaged nation including the 'wish-list' of defence equipment it has sought from India. Both India and Afghanistan are also expected to consider how they can jointly combat terrorism unleashed by Pakistan-based terror groups in both India and Afghanistan, Tolo News reported.

The Afghan leader will today arrive in Delhi for delegation-level talks of the "India Afghanistan Strategic Partnership Council" during which the two sides are likely to review the entire gamut of relations, including the Indian humanitarian assistance to the embattled nation.

This will be the first high-level visit to India from Afghanistan after U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled his Afghan strategy last month and appealed to India to assume a greater role in the country.

President Trump has appealed to India to play a larger role in providing economic and development assistance to the war-torn Afghanistan. President Trump described India as "a key security and economic partner of the United States," and said America would further "develop its strategic partnership with India - the world's largest democracy.