United Nations – Addressing the United Nations Security Council briefing of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) September 17, 2025, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, P. Harish, emphasized India’s interest in peace, stability and development in Afghanistan as a priority for India, validated by its participation in UN meetings and its readiness to engage with all parties on this. “India has a paramount interest in ensuring peace and stability in Afghanistan,” he said.
Reminding the international community that life under a sanctioned regime for four years and devastation from the recent earthquake had made the situation worse, Harish said, “This is the time for compassion, a time for lending a helping hand to millions of Afghanis suffering under the yoke of poverty, disease and hunger.”
Emphasizing India’s prioritized humanitarian assistance and capacity building initiatives for Afghan people, Harish said India’s commitment was evident in India’s more than 500 development partnership projects across all of Afghan’s provinces.
India’s Humanitarian Assistance – Harish stated India has been cooperating with the UN agencies in areas of health, food security, education and sports.
ADVERTISEMENT
Response to Earthquake – India responded promptly to the recent earthquake, becoming one of the first countries to extend humanitarian assistance in the form of 1,000 family tents, 15 tons of food supplies, 21 tons of relief materials including medicines, hygiene kits, blankets and generators. More relief supplies are on the way, Harish said.
Four Year Assistance – India has extended continued humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan since August of 2021, providing a total of 50,000 tons of wheat, more than 330 tons of medicines and vaccines, 40,000 liters of pesticides and other social support items, Harish said.
Drug Rehabilitation Assistance – India has also been actively engaged in drug rehabilitation, especially focused on women, Harish pointed out. He listed India’s contribution of 84 metric tons of assistance and medicines and 32 metric tons of social support items.
Education Assistance – A major contribution of India is to the education of the Afghan people, providing scholarships and fellowships for undergraduate and graduate studies to 2,000 Afghan students, of which 600 were girls and women.
Continuing Political Dialogue – India has also an open political dialogue with Afghanistan, Harish said, referring to the two talks between India’s External Affairs Minister and the Acting Foreign Minister of Afghanistan, in mutual interest. He then spoke about India’s appreciation of Afghanistan’s condemnation of the Pahalgam terrorist attack in April of 2025.
Need for a Different Approach – Harish stressed the need for a nuanced and integrated approach to deal with the post-conflict situation in Afghanistan. “Afghanistan needs a fresh approach with hitherto unused policy instruments to support its people who are in such a dire need,” said Harish.
“Business-as-Usual approach is only expected to maintain status quo-which is not good for Afghanistan and unlikely to meet international community expectations for Afghanistan’s people,” said Harish, reiterating India’s continued commitment to engage with relevant stakeholders and support the international community’s efforts for stability in the region.
Earlier, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan and Head of the UNAMA, Roza Otunbayeva, told the Security Council that support from the international community was affected by the lack of pragmatism in Afghanistan.
Hanifa Girowal, speaking for civil society, urged the Security Council to ensure on a priority basis that political dialog is led by Afghan women, schools are reopened and women’s right to work is restored.
A majority of the UN member states also stressed similar needs.