India - Afghanistan: Dangers of Getting too Close to Taliban
STORIES, ANALYSES, EXPERT VIEWS
India’s relations with Afghanistan continue to improve with reports indicating that it may accept a new Afghan envoy in New Delhi. This comes on the heels of the first high-level meeting between India and the Taliban in January, with India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and acting Taliban ‘Foreign Minister’ Amir Khan Muttaqi meeting in Dubai to discuss strengthening political and economic ties, and providing humanitarian aid.
India’s relationship with the Taliban, writes Chris Fitzgerald (freelance journalist covering Afghanistan and director of the Platform for Peace and Humanity’s Indo-Pacific program) “has been trending this way for some time, beginning when New Delhi reopened its embassy in Kabul in June 2022, almost a year after the Taliban retook power in Afghanistan. But accepting a Taliban diplomat in India would be a significant shift, all but recognising the regime as the legitimate rulers of Afghanistan.”
Countering China: China was the first country to accept the credentials of a Taliban envoy last year and funding several infrastructure projects in Afghanistan. Beijing is also considering letting the Taliban join its lucrative Belt and Road Initiative, which would bring the regime firmly into its sphere of influence.
Significant risks that India should worry about
Engaging with the Taliban, writes Fitzgerald “comes with significant risks…The country has become a hotbed for terrorism under the Taliban. The Islamic State (IS) is running rampant, conducting deadly terror attacks across Afghanistan that target the regime and the interests of its allies.”
This includes the assassination of Taliban ‘Minister’ and powerbroker Khalil Ur-Rahman Haqqani in December and threatening to bomb the Chinese embassy in Kabul in 2023. Russia has also been targeted.
The Taliban has also been accused of supporting its affiliate, the Tehrik-e Taliban, to carry out attacks in Pakistan. A spate of attacks late last year led to Pakistan conducting airstrikes on terror camps in Afghanistan and subsequent clashes at border crossings between the Taliban and Pakistan’s armed forces.
Caution for India: New Delhi has long called for Afghanistan to be free of terrorism, and this, writes Fitzgerald “should be a key demand, rites before any further engagement with the Taliban takes place. This includes the Taliban collaborating with regional partners to defeat the IS and forcing the group to renounce the support of the Tehrik-e Taliban…..
“India should heed the lessons of rivals China and Pakistan, who have had their fingers burnt after engaging with the Taliban and investing in Afghanistan…..”
