External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Afghan counterpart Mohammad Haneef Atmar on Monday held wide-ranging talks with a focus on the peace process in Afghanistan and on boosting cooperation in areas of security, connectivity and trade.

Atmar arrived here on Monday afternoon on a three-day visit against the backdrop of renewed efforts to speed up the peace process.

The Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said Jaishankar reiterated “India’s long-term commitment towards making Afghanistan a united, peaceful and prosperous constitutional democracy respecting the will of its people”.

“Taking India-Afghanistan Strategic Partnership forward. EAM @DrSJaishankar warmly welcomed @MHaneefAtmar. Issues of bilateral & regional interest including development cooperation, trade & investment, regional connectivity, security cooperation and peace process were discussed,” he tweeted.

The Afghan foreign minister’s visit to India came days after Russia hosted a conference between Afghan government and the Taliban in Moscow, and pressed for a ceasefire in the war-ravaged country.

“Arrived in beautiful & historic city of Delhi for a 3-day working visit,” Atmar tweeted.

The Afghan foreign minister said he was looking forward to holding talks with Jaishankar and senior Indian officials on the Afghan peace process as well as on security and economic cooperation.

The Afghan foreign ministry said the purpose of Atmar’s visit to India is to discuss bilateral relations, strengthen regional and international consensus on the Afghan peace process, and enhance cooperation in security, economic, political and cultural spheres. It said that besides holding talks with Jaishankar, Atmar is scheduled to meet a number of high-ranking Indian government officials, including National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.