India needs to adopt a more pragmatic stance in the context of the ongoing intra-Afghan talks. Discuss, in the light of India's engagement with Afghanistan.
Answers
India and Afghanistan have a strong relationship based on historical and cultural links. India has been engaging with Afghanistan on various fronts :-
- India became one of the key supporters of the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance. In 2005, India proposed Afghanistan's membership in SAARC.
- India has committed close to $3 billion in institution and infrastructure development in Afghanistan including small and large infrastructure projects, humanitarian assistance and capacity building.
For example :- Zaranj to Delaram road; construction of Afghan-India Friendship Dam (Salma Dam) etc.
- Although India has long chosen to refrain from putting boots on the ground in Afghanistan, the country has provided the Afghan security forces with critical operational training, limited military equipment, and capacity-building courses.
- The engagement was recognized by Afghanistan by conferring PM Narendra Modi with Afghanistan’s highest civilian honour, the Amir Amanullah Khan Award in 2016.
India has always supported Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace and reconciliation process. In February, 2020, the US struck a peace deal with the Taliban with the aim of withdrawal of U.S. and international troops. The intra-Afghan talks were part of the deal. Since the Afghan peace process began two years ago, India’s role in it has been peripheral at best.
In this context of intra-Afghan talks, there seems to be a need for India to adopt a more pragmatic stance. It has been India’s stated policy that it will not engage with the Taliban, as it continues to see the fundamentalist group as being aided by Pakistan. However, India’s engagement with an ascendant Taliban, is important for a number of reasons :-
- Growing international legitimacy and credibility of Taliban :- A noticeable change in the Taliban’s external engagement can be seen in its links with Pakistan and also with its erstwhile adversaries, especially Iran and Russia, and its contact with China.
- Establishing diplomatic contacts with a politically empowered Taliban :- It will be crucial to safeguard New Delhi’s existing and future economic interests in the country, including those linked with Central Asian energy markets and broader connectivity projects for example-Chabahar Port.
- Countering Pakistan :- An active engagement strategy with the Taliban will provide India with some leverage over Afghanistan’s future, which may be helpful in offsetting Pakistan’s efforts aimed at sabotaging Indian stakes in the country.
Realistically, the likely possible outcomes of the talks are either a political apparatus dominated by the Taliban or continued lack of consensus and violence. In either case, the Taliban will continue to remain preponderant. Thus, there is a case to be made to shift the approach. The External Affairs Minister’s presence at the opening ceremony of the intra-Afghan talks hints at such a gradual shift in the making.
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