India stands committed to prosperity of Afghan people: Krishna

New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S.M Krishna on Wednesday said India is doing its best for the reconstruction of Afghanistan to improve the social and economic lives of the friendly people, who have been suffering from conflict for the last almost three decades.

Addressing the 11th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Heads of States Summit here, Krishna said: "We are helping our Afghan friends even at the cost of the lives of our people. India stands committed to the prosperity of the Afghan people and our Prime Minister was in Afghanistan recently to reaffirm India's unwavering commitment to this cause."

"Afghanistan has the promise of becoming a geo-strategic bridge between Central Asia and South Asia as well as a trade and transit hub with modern infrastructure," he added.

Krishna said the SCO has played a constructive and forward-looking role in contributing towards peace in Afghanistan.

"SCO's discussions on Afghanistan and particularly the recent initiatives by Russia, have all added to our understanding of the difficult situation there and helped us examine regional solutions," he added.