India should also apologize, like Imran Khan: former Afghan PM

Ground Report | New Delhi: India should also apologize; Former Prime Minister of Afghanistan Gulbuddin Hekmatyar has said that Afghanistan should have a government that can be recognized internationally by countries. "I think the US does not want a permanent government here and will not recognize any government here for some time," he said at a news conference in Kabul on Sunday. Hekmatyar is the leader of Hizb-e-Islami, the second-largest extremist group in Afghanistan.

India should also apologize

He said that foreign powers want the government of their choice in Afghanistan and that is why they are talking about banning the Taliban and saying that they will not recognize the Taliban government in Afghanistan.

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"They want to bring their people into the government, but the Afghan citizens themselves will decide their government keeping in mind their religious and national values," he said. Hekmatyar said his party supports the Taliban and hopes other countries in the world will not impose sanctions on Afghanistan.

What about India?

Hekmatyar said that India has a moral and political responsibility to assure the whole world and the people of Afghanistan that it will not interfere in the affairs of this country. He said that as India had supported any one group earlier, it has to be assured that it will not say so.

He said that "India had supported the Soviet attack on Afghanistan in the past, we want the Indian government to apologize for it in the same way as Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan had." Recently, the Prime Minister of Pakistan had said that it was a mistake to join him in America's war.

Appeal to European countries to make independent policy

Hekmatyar said that an American in Afghanistan does not want a permanent government in Afghanistan and urged European countries to make their own independent policies.

Talking to the media, he said, "I think the internal situation including the economic situation is such that if all the parties are able to get control, it will be a big deal. We are hearing many things from the Taliban as well." He said that in the matter of Afghanistan, proceed with caution, that the situation will be better.

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'Islamic state not a big problem'

Hekmatyar said, "You must have heard that some countries have made a good decision that they will not pressurize the Afghan government, will wait for them and give time." “As far as the economic situation is concerned, we are facing difficulties but we will have a strong government, we have a large number of minerals which have not yet been extracted. We have gold, copper, logo, lithium, oil, gas, and other things."

He said that China first wanted to invest in the copper sector but the US did not allow it to do so. “If we have a strong government, we will deal with external problems. Afghanistan has more mineral wealth than Pakistan and Iran.

Hekmatyar said the alleged extremist organization Islamic State was a problem but said it was not a "big problem" at the moment. He said, “Panjshiri and IS will not be able to create any big trouble after the foreign troops leave. We expect European countries to reconsider their policy and not make such a mistake again."

"I hope that he will make an independent policy towards Afghanistan and will not do any work under the supervision of America." He said that he wants an Afghanistan that is free from war and foreign interference.

"First the war has to end, then an interim framework will have to be put in place and then the first hundred days plan can be debated," he said.

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