India which since the takeover of Kabul by Taliban on 15th August 2021 has been ousted from Afghanistan affairs is again on desperate move of seeking its strategic role in the future of Afghanistan with the help of Western countries like USA, Britain and France etc. India is hosting a regional level national security Dialogue/ adviser-level meeting in New Delhi on Afghanistan’ on November 10-11. The meeting was chaired by Indian NSA Ajit Doval organized by the National Security Council Secretariat.
Ironically, India’s so-called ‘Delhi Regional Security Dialogue on Afghanistan’ becomes meaningful, meaningless and suspicious in absence of no representative from “Afghanistan” as they are not “invited” by India. Doesn’t a meeting or conference carrying the purpose of “peace-establishment “in any particular part of the world become worthless without engaging the true and actual representative and stakeholder of the same country?
India already notoriously known for stalling and sabotaging the regional peace process thus hosting of NSA-India level summit is nothing but New Delhi cunning attempt to cover up its image of “spoiler” to try to enhance its relevance in the region as India has faced both the strategic losses & relevancy in Afghanistan after US withdrawal.
Pakistan had already snubbed India’s hosted summit on Afghanistan while condemning and exposing its hypocrisy and double game of being a real “spoiler” in the region and now trying to pretend like a so called “sincere, loyal and responsible” actor and neighbor & now pretending to be a “peace-maker”, though the world is witnessed how India ruthlessly used Afghan soil to carry subversive terrorist activities to undermine and ruin Pakistan. Being well-cognizant of India’s true face and negative role in the region particularly in Afghanistan, China has also declined India’s invitation to Delhi Regional Security Dialogue on Afghanistan. Pakistan and China, both key players, skipped the New Delhi meeting knowing the malicious and heinous motives of India behind such summits.
Pakistan also held a separate summit on Afghanistan, Pakistan’s special envoy on Afghanistan Mohammad Sadiq Khan hosted a meeting called “Troika Plus” in Islamabad on 11 November. Iran has also kept India out of it.
The timing of the extended Troika meeting in Islamabad underlines that despite India’s desperate efforts to re-emerge itself as relevant to the Afghan situation Pakistan remains the pivotal key player.
Official representatives from Russia, China, the United States as well as Taliban government’s acting foreign minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi attended the Islamabad meeting.
Special envoys for Afghanistan of three major countries, Thomas West of the US, Zameer Kabul of Russia and Yue Xiaoing of China, met with Pakistani and Afghan officials during the visit. The meeting discussed enhancing ties, economy, transit, refugees and expanding facilities and grave humanitarian issues due to lack of financial and monetary aid in Afghanistan by western countries.
“Troika Plus is the most important and potent grouping of the key Afghan stakeholders. Even before the Taliban took control of Kabul, the four countries have been collectively persuading the Taliban to meet the international community’s demands on the formation of an inclusive government, protection of human and women rights and not allowing the Afghan soil to be used again by any terrorist group operating within Afghanistan.
The Troika Plus meeting reflected the common desire of Pakistan to see a “peaceful, stable, unified, sovereign and prosperous Afghanistan”.
Pakistan although has not recognized the new Afghan Taliban regime, yet still facilitated border movement and dispatched humanitarian aid food, blankets, clothes and other essential items of winter as well as administering covid-19 vaccinations to the suffering Afghan masses.
Pakistan is playing a very “practical and constructive” role in Afghanistan unlike India who wants to derail the peace process in Afghanistan. Despite India’s heinous designs and conspiracies Pakistan has successfully pushed forward the peace process in war torn country by mediating the “Doha AGREEMENT” between USA, other regional actors and Taliban, while India directly sponsoring terrorism in Afghanistan via groups like ISIS DAESH. India is in a deep state of Trance including western powers over the rapidly evolving situation in Afghanistan. India’s unnecessary intervention, meaningful interest and involvement in Afghanistan has today brought it in a very awkward and irrelevant position. India provided military hardware like four helicopters, artillery field pieces, small arms, radar, ammunition, drones, huge funds amongst other ordnance to Afghan government against Taliban. India indeed played a very negative role to keep Taliban away from power in Afghanistan by its cunning tactics of investment and collaboration with Ashraf Ghani government to keep its influence and hegemony in Afghanistan and the region. India had funded the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance along with Iran and Russia. Since India holds illegal agenda of expanding its territory thus it’s also having tensed and worst relations with China which badly terrifying it, hence it maliciously playing dual role, firstly to curtail Taliban rule with of the help international conspiracies, secondly to emerge as a responsible state by pretending itself very much concerned and perturbed over the tensed geo-political situation of the central Asia .Indian media harshly criticizing Modi and previous governments for investing more than $2 billion in aid in Afghanistan since 9/11. India avoided military intervention in Afghanistan to skip complete deadlock with Taliban, but covertly, India still India aimed to resist the Taliban from seizing the complete reins of power. India closely monitors the developments in Afghanistan through reality check to craft the best way forward. India has intensified its efforts to build a coalition of wary neighbors to stall the Taliban. So far Indian analysts are of view that drainage of Indian Investment in Afghanistan has not only panicked the government but numbed Indian decision-making as well.
Pakistan on the other hand want the world to coordinate and get constructively engaged with the incumbent Afghan government to avert a humanitarian crisis for the sake of the country’s people and a worse situation might develop if the humanitarian crisis is not taken up seriously by the international community as it is not a matter of the Taliban or some other government but of the ordinary Afghan people. World economies need to extend support to people of Afghanistan to avert the humanitarian crisis emerging there rapidly .Pakistan appeals to the international community to recognize the legitimacy of the Taliban-led government as “new reality” in Afghanistan after four decades of war, violence, bloodshed and civil-war.
Russia and China have backed Pakistan’s demand that the US should unfreeze the Afghan central bank’s $9.5 billion assets as the US has no legitimate right to impose such a humanitarian restriction on a war torn country. The US, however, is reluctant to do that as it is using it as a resort to pressurize the Taliban to comply with the demands made by the western countries. Instead of helping stabilize the new government that has committed to bring peace to this war-torn country, the Western countries show apathy, jeopardizing lives of millions of innocent Afghans. The US has gone a step further by freezing $9.5 billion of Afghan central bank assets, which legitimately belong to the Afghan people. The western world deliberately avoids fulfilling its collective responsibility to avert a grave humanitarian crisis confronting the innocent people of Afghanistan. Due to the callous approach of the USA and western community today, Afghanistan stands at the brink of an economic crunch and with international funding freeze, it has become impossible to pay even salaries, let alone pursue development projects.
Pakistan keeps sensitizing the USA and other western world that what actually prevents them to recognize the incumbent “reality” Taliban regime in Afghanistan? While actually, it was actually the USA who hosted the Taliban in Washington.it was USA and western allies who signed Doha Agreement with Taliban. It was the USA who urged Pakistan to release Tehreek-Pakistan-Taliban TTA leadership from Prison.
Off course both Pakistan and Taliban cannot help USA and western powers frustration if Ashraf Ghani fled cowardly from Afghanistan soon after USA and western allies forces withdrawal though United States alone had invested $2.26 trillion to Afghan forces and equipped them with advance and modern weapons but even then 20 years occupation, advanced technology and resources were in vain before just 60,000 Taliban’s bravery and resolve to free their land from foreign intrusion.
The Taliban after capturing Kabul has given amnesty to all the anti-Taliban rival groups and factions operating in Afghanistan presenting a great acumen and reassuring face. Taliban even announced the protection of women rights within the spirit and framework of Islam allowing them to continue their studies and jobs. Media also gave freedom with advice to journalists to abide by the national interests. The new Taliban regime is more moderate and refraining themselves from mistreatment and repression of masses and their rights in Afghanistan. Taliban manifesting their moderate and soft stance as far as human rights, women rights and individual freedom contrary to their 1990’s rule.it is now imperatively an obligation lies on the shoulders of US and western world to push forward a dialogue with Taliban regime to give them a space and opportunity to deliver their promises as test case while taking off their biased spectacles towards Taliban.
Economic development, availability of basic essential services, restoration of international aid and funding, presence of employment opportunities and livelihood vital for the Afghan people to thrive and survive under such humanitarian crises prevailing in Afghanistan due to apathy of US and western world who claim themselves to be the champion of human rights in the world. Disengagement with these facilities will ultimately harm the international agenda and goal of peace and harmony in Afghanistan and inclusion of a broad based government. Afghanistan is in desperate need of external world financial aid and technical support for sustainable development and growth and to avert the humanitarian crisis over there. Dialogue is the only way forward with Taliban, paying heed to Taliban’s perspective will be crucial to make things creep in the right direction as Taliban so far have shed off their image of tyranny and now arises an urge to find a way to reconcile their interpretation with international norms and standards. Taliban reemergence with modest and lenient ideology, makes analysts think that Afghanistan has squandered an opportunity to transform itself, yet it is an “opportunity” instead of an obstacle and if US and western world helps establish peace in Afghanistan then it could become a major hub as a corridor of connectivity. The conflict and instability in Afghanistan remained an impediment for regional peace, security and development. Pakistan through its sincere and selfless diplomatic efforts trying to make the western world realize that their ruthless approach towards Taliban could be counterproductive as only expecting the Taliban to perform and make the state function with their hands tied at the back is quite insane and irrational. It is time that the international community comes forward to rescue the Afghan society from sinking again into poverty and conflict. Pakistan suggested co-opting the Taliban into the political mainstream as early as the 2002 Bonn Conference. Pakistan stressed the United States at the highest levels of the need to seek a negotiated settlement subsequently but they paid no heed at all. Washington backed and supported an illegitimate regime in Kabul. US attempt to stamp Kabul’s previous authorities of Hamid Karzai and Ashraf Ghani through warlords was a bane as these are the people against whom the Taliban had initially risen during the 1990s. The collapse of such a regime was inevitable but the surprise is how quickly it dissipated and it has shocked US, western world including India
Peace and tranquility in Afghanistan is a matter of national security for Pakistan and it is the right of the Afghans to have peace after protracted violence over the past four decades. Pakistan has been the worst victim of instability in Afghanistan to be a target of terrorism, including state sponsored terrorism from its immediate neighbor India via using Afghan soil and intelligence networks of both RAW and The National Directorate of Security (NDS). Approximately 3.5 million Pakistanis were displaced and Pakistan lost 80,000 lives during the 20-year war of terror against Afghanistan. Pakistan due to its proximity and historical connection has faced the most serious consequences of war in Afghanistan thus Pakistan remains proactive in promoting engagement with Afghanistan. It may be a luxury for the Western world and USA to remain least bothered about the lingering humanitarian crisis and instability in Afghanistan sitting 10,000 miles away. Pakistan does not have any choice to disengage from Afghanistan internal affairs.
Time has seriously arrived for the US and international community to shun its hypocrite and naive approach of fostering pressure upon Pakistan” to do more”. NATO partners are unwise and senseless not to acknowledge that indeed Pakistan could not “do more” jeopardizing its national security and sovereignty matters.
India has its set of worries and is watching the rapid abrupt changes in Afghanistan helplessly with the rise of the Taliban. The Indian narrative of always labelling the Taliban as an extremist group has proved to be a flimsy job. Taliban cherish pride, commitment and self-belief thus undermining Taliban with superficial analysis of being a “group of few extremists” is totally rubbish. India desperately wants to remain relevant in the transformation of Afghanistan and hence doing melo-dramas of holding summits on Afghanistan to hoodwink the world.
The American foreign policy establishment also should not forget what the Chinese Prime Minister Chou En Lai said to Henry Kissinger on July 11, 1971 after his secret visit to Beijing arranged by Pakistan, “do not forget the bridge you have crossed to reach China”.
