BJP’s Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy has launched a scathing attack against his own government after the US State Department announced the ‘Quad Regional Support for Afghanistan.’
Swamy tweeted, “Is this not an America’s slap to Modi government? Or we too thick skinned?”
Announcing the formation of new Quad countries for Afghanistan, the US State Department said, “Representatives of the United States, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Uzbekistan agreed in principle to establish a new quadrilateral diplomatic platform focused on enhancing regional connectivity.”
It added, “The parties consider long-term peace and stability in Afghanistan critical to regional connectivity and agree that peace and regional connectivity are mutually reinforcing. Recognizing the historic opportunity to open flourishing interregional trade routes, the parties intend to cooperate to expand trade, build transit links, and strengthen business-to-business ties. The parties agreed to meet in the coming months to determine the modalities of this cooperation with mutual consensus.”
Swamy’s ire against the Modi government appears to emanate from the exclusion of India from the Quad.
The security situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated after the withdrawal of the US forces from the countries. Globally-renowned Indian photojournalist Danish Siddiqui was killed in a firing from Taliban fighters in Kandahar on Friday.
Meanwhile, the daughter of Najibullah Alikhil, the Afghanistan ambassador in Pakistan, was abducted from a hospital in Islamabad, where she was undergoing treatment in a hospital. She was allegedly tortured for several hours before being released.