India’s intent on engaging with the Afghan Taliban comes as no surprise as India is looking for new avenues to establish a working relationship with the new regime. The Taliban are eager to forge diplomatic ties with regional nations and global organizations. They are therefore considering the possibility of establishing diplomatic relations with India and seeking global recognition as the legitimate government. Kabul is eager to build ties with India due to the economy’s deterioration and the unwillingness of other nations to trade with and invest in the nation.
The most recent developments, including the agreement by Afghanistan’s Defence Minister Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob to train Afghan soldiers in India, are indicative of their efforts to gain diplomatic and international legitimacy. India, which once withdrew from Afghanistan on the grounds that it believed the Taliban regime would likely promote safe havens for anti-state entities, is currently attempting to find a new place to play in the nation by establishing diplomatic ties with it under the guise of providing humanitarian aid.
Even though New Delhi has not formally recognized the Taliban administration, it has sent a technical team to its embassy in an effort to once more establish a strong diplomatic presence in Kabul. According to their Ministry of External Affairs, the Indian government also sent a shipment of medical supplies under the guise of “humanitarian assistance” that included drugs, vaccinations, and medical equipment. In recent months, Indian diplomatic missions have also traveled to Kabul. The Afghan Taliban have welcomed these overtures from the Indian side.
Although the current government in Afghanistan asserts that it will bring stability and peace, recent incidents of rising terrorist activities both inside their own borders and in Pakistan have alarmed the world. The necessity to drive out terrorist organizations from Afghan territory has long been emphasized by Pakistan and other regional and international stakeholders.
Would India Make Investments in Taliban-Ruled Afghanistan?
The 1999 IAF hijacking still leaves a fresh memory. India must curtail engagement with Afghanistan as long as the repressive regime exists. In its shocking decision, the Taliban regime has announced a ban on female students studying in universities. Women constitute half of Afghanistan’s population. Depriving the majority of the population from acquiring higher education, seeking jobs, visiting gyms and public parks is a violation of human rights. In actuality, a leadership that is becoming more brutal and irrational by the day seeks to keep the majority of the populace hidden from view. Making the choice publicly and formally is the regime’s method of betraying its commitments made during the Doha negotiations, including creating an inclusive administration.
The international community must review its current policy towards the Taliban 2.0 regime. In recent months, both flights to Afghanistan and bank transfers to the Afghan government have been halted by Indian authorities. To ostensibly protect them from the “horrific Taliban rule,” the Indian government has revoked a sizable number of student visas for Afghans while simultaneously removing members of the Sikh minority.
Instead of claiming helplessness, the international community should acknowledge that the Taliban’s violation of women’s rights is a fundamental problem, not merely a desirable conclusion that is optional for Afghanistan’s future.
Leading countries should set up centers outside Afghanistan for non-Taliban Afghan leaders, especially women who had previously won elections, to reassemble, organize, and express an alternative vision to the gloomy one, the Taliban appears determined to drag the nation into.
[Photo by VOA, Public Domain]
*Anima Puri is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at Manav Rachna International Institute of Research and Studies, India. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author.
