Mr. Vikram Misri, a leader of the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, recently had a meeting with Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in Dubai (UAE). At this point, Mr. Misri is the highest-ranking Indian official in direct contact with the Taliban regime in Afghanistan.
Up to now, the Taliban have only had high-level meetings with very few countries in the world. China took the lead in quickly establishing high-level direct contact and dialogue with Taliban representatives, and strongly promoted cooperation with this regime. Compared to both China and Russia, India is much slower in approaching the Taliban.
It seems that India has realized that there can be no further delay in rapprochement with the Taliban regime. The practical benefit of India’s strategic significance in conquering the Taliban is to ensure security against the risk of being attacked by radical Muslim forces in the region, while also preventing Afghanistan from being blockaded by China. Take advantage of the Taliban to confront Pakistan.
The trump cards used by India in this game are humanitarian assistance and implementation of development cooperation projects in Afghanistan. India’s most important partner and ally in conquering the Taliban is Iran. For the Taliban, this gesture of India’s hand is no different than asking for a wish and brings many benefits. This changing direction in the relationship between India and Afghanistan will fundamentally change the political, security and international relations landscape in this region.
