Indian Foreign Minister Vikram Misri met Afghan Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Mottaki in Dubai last week, taking a strong leap forward in bilateral relations.
While India has been gradually increasing its engagement with the Taliban, this latest meeting represents the highest-level talks since the Islamist group took control of Afghanistan in 2021. Notably, this was the second meeting between Taliban officials. New Delhi and Kabul in just two months, indicating the readiness of the two countries to intensify diplomatic engagement.
“We should not overestimate the impact of Pakistani tensions with the Taliban on India’s intensification of its relations with the Taliban. New Delhi had already taken some small steps toward engaging with the Taliban soon after the Taliban returned to power, before tensions crept into Taliban-Taliban relations. Pakistan,” Michael Kugelman, director of the South Asia Institute at the Wilson Center, tells Fox News Digital.
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Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, addresses the media at Parliament House in New Delhi on December 7, 2022. (Prakash Singh/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
During the discussions, Al-Masry stressed the “historical friendship” and “strong popular communications” between the two countries. On the other hand, the Afghan Foreign Minister described India as “an important and economically significant country in the region.”
According to a statement by the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the talks focused on strengthening bilateral relations, addressing security concerns, engaging in development projects, and enhancing humanitarian aid.
India is among several countries actively facilitating trade, aid and medical support to Afghanistan under the agreement Taliban regime. The country, which hosts thousands of Afghan refugees, also pledged to provide “material support” for their rehabilitation in Afghanistan.
“New Delhi’s outreach to the Taliban is driven by the view that closer engagement can help India better realize its security and strategic interests in Afghanistan – this includes strengthening trade and communication links and ensuring India is not threatened by terrorists on Afghan soil.” Kugelman explained.
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The talks also touched on enhancing trade through the port of Chabahar in the Iranian province of Sistan and Baluchestan. India is developing Chabahar port to enable goods to bypass the ports there Competitor, Pakistan. This strategic port, located on the other side of the border with Pakistan, could provide landlocked Afghanistan with an alternative route to receive and send goods, and bypass Pakistan.
Afghan refugees living in Pakistan demonstrate against India in Lahore, Pakistan, February 28, 2019. (AP Photo/KM Chaudary)
The meeting between India and the Taliban could lead to destabilization in Pakistan, which shares borders with the two countries. India and Pakistan are long-time rivals, having fought three wars On Kashmir Since the two countries gained independence in 1947. This meeting is also taking place amid deteriorating relations between the Taliban regime and Pakistan, which were considered friendly neighbors, with escalating cross-border violence.
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The talks took place just days after India “unequivocally” condemned Pakistani air strikes in Afghanistan in late December. These rare air strikes resulted in the killing of dozens of civilians, including women and children. Pakistani officials claimed that the strikes targeted Pakistani Taliban militants. Islamabad often accuses the Pakistani Taliban of using Afghan territory to launch attacks in Pakistan, something Kabul denies.
People gather at the border crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan, in Chaman, Pakistan, August 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Jafar Khan)
The diplomatic engagement also follows the Taliban's appointment of an acting consul at the Afghan consulate in Bombay in November, the same month the Joint Secretary of the Indian Ministry of External Affairs visited Kabul. Although no foreign government, including India, has officially recognized the Taliban administration since it came to power in 2021, India reopened its embassy in Kabul less than a year after the Taliban returned to power.
“Islamabad has already witnessed a significant decline in its relations with its former members of the Taliban,” Kugelman said. “Now it has to deal with the fact that its rival India may fill the void left by Pakistan's move away from the Taliban. No matter how you slice it, this is bad news for Pakistan everywhere.”
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Many factors, in addition to the deterioration of Pakistani relations, may have prompted India to strengthen its relations with Afghanistan. the Weaken IranDue to conflicts in the Middle East and internal issues, its influence over the Taliban movement was reduced. Meanwhile, Russia, one of India's closest allies, is moving toward recognizing the Taliban government in Afghanistan, even describing the group as a partner in the fight against terrorism. Moscow sees a major security threat from militant Islamist groups across countries from Afghanistan to the Middle East, especially after the loss of Bashar al-Assad in Syria.
Hundreds of people gather near a US Air Force C-17 transport plane in the vicinity of the international airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, on August 17, 2021. (AP)
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China is also working to strengthen its ties with the Taliban, making India wary of Beijing's growing influence. Additionally, India's approach may be influenced by President-elect Trump's imminent return to the White House. The Trump administration initially brokered the US-Afghan withdrawal agreement. Now Trump's re-election may lead to new dynamics in the region, which would push India to protect its long-term interests.
On the other hand, the United States severed its diplomatic relations with Kabul since its independence Chaotic withdrawal From war-torn Afghanistan. Washington maintains a policy of sanctions and isolation towards Taliban leaders. But now, countries in the region are assessing the implications of the new Trump administration for the Taliban.
