U.S. Says It Supports India’s Continued Involvement In Afghanistan

The United States says it supports India's continued involvement in Afghanistan, including its "substantial" investment and aid to the war-ravaged country.

"The United States welcomes India's substantial investment in and assistance to Afghanistan," Nancy Izzo Jackson, a State Department official in charge of Afghanistan, told a conference in Washington on November 21.

"And we will continue to support efforts to achieve an honorable and enduring outcome in Afghanistan that preserves our investment in Afghanistan's future," she told the gathering focusing on New Delhi’s role in Afghanistan.

India has been active in its support of the Kabul government since the 2001 U.S.-led invasion that drove the Taliban from power, contributing some $3 billion in the past 18 years and building Afghanistan's new parliament building.

India also has an influence on daily life in Afghanistan, as it does in many countries of the region, because of its cultural offerings, including immensely popular Bollywood films.

India's bitter nuclear rival, Pakistan -- which lies between Afghanistan and India -- has kept a cautious eye on New Delhi’s efforts in Afghanistan in part because of fears of encirclement.

With reporting by AFP