India on Monday expressed concern at the "increased terrorist activities" in Afghanistan and pledged another $50 million for the reconstruction of the conflict-steeped country.
The announcement came after talks here between Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and visiting Afghan President Hamid Karzai, during which they discussed the whole range of bilateral and regional issues, including ways to strengthen cooperation for fighting terrorism and boosting stability in the region.
"We discussed the security situation in Afghanistan and expressed concern at the increased terrorist activities in some parts of the country," Manmohan Singh said in his opening remarks at a joint press conference after the talks.
The two leaders called for cooperation between India, Afghanistan and Pakistan to fight terrorism.
Karzai thanked India for "going out of its way to help us in rebuilding lives in Afghanistan and in strengthening infrastructure and institutions of democracy.
He also thanked India for facilitating Afghanistan's entry into the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc).
Accords were signed between the two sides in the fields of education and rural development.
The Bureau of Indian Standards and the Afghanistan National Standardisation Authority also signed an agreement.
The additional assistance announced on Monday takes India's total contribution to Afghanistan's reconstruction to $650 million.
{{/usCountry}}The additional assistance announced on Monday takes India's total contribution to Afghanistan's reconstruction to $650 million.
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