China Hopes Afghanistan Can Fend Off External Forces

China hopes Afghanistan will fulfill its commitment to not allowing any external forces to use its territory to oppose neighbours or harm the security of other nations, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Thursday.

In a statement published by the Foreign Ministry, Wang said he welcomed Afghanistan’s active participation in the Belt and Road infrastructure initiative and that Beijing would push to extend the China-Pakistan economic corridor into Afghanistan.

Wang made the comments in a meeting with Afghanistan's deputy Prime Minister Abdul Ghani Baradar, the statement said. His visit was the highest-level visit by a Chinese official since the Taliban took power in the country in August.

Wang also met with acting Afghan foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi to discuss political and economic ties, including starting work in the mining sector and a Belt and Road role for Afghanistan, according to a statement from an Afghan foreign ministry spokesman.

China is among just a handful of countries, including Pakistan and Qatar, that has sent a minister to Afghanistan since the Taliban took over.

The visit came after widespread global condemnation of the Taliban administration a day earlier, when it unexpectedly ordered girls home from high school, an abrupt U-turn on policy after it had said earlier in the week schools would be open to all students.

Wang later on Thursday arrived in India for talks with his Indian counterpart, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar. Their meeting will be the highest-level visit by a Chinese official to the country since border clashes soured relations two years ago. (Reuters)