<span style="color: #222222;">India has confirmed its participation in the Moscow Format Meeting on Afghanistan. The meeting, which is being hosted by Russia is scheduled to be held in Moscow on Wednesday. The Ministry of External Affairs has said India received an invitation and will be participating in the meeting at the joint secretary level. </span><br />''<br />''This will be the first Moscow format dialogue after the takeover of Kabul by the Taliban in August 2021. This will be the second time that India will be meeting the Taliban face-to-face since it set up an interim government last month. India's Ambassador to Qatar had earlier met Taliban representatives in Doha on 31st August. Taliban has also confirmed its participation in the meeting. According to Afghan Foreign Ministry, the delegation will be headed by Abdul Salam Hanafi, Deputy Prime Minister of the interim Afghan government.<br />''<br />''The Moscow format was introduced in 2017 on the basis of the six-party mechanism for consultations between special representatives from Russia, Afghanistan, China, Pakistan, Iran, and India.<br />''<br />''<span style="color: #222222;">The meeting is expected to provide yet another opportunity to explore the feasibility of an inclusive Government in Afghanistan battered by violence, rise in terror activities and shattered economy. </span><br />