India Trying to take Centerstage.
Nearly three months after the Taliban takeover of Kabul, India has finally woken up and is trying to assert itself. India’s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval will host meeting of NSAs of neighbouring countries on November 10 to discuss Afghanistan’s future and how to deal with threats to security emanating from developments there..
This meeting has come as a pleasant surprise because the troika PCR(Pakistan-China-Russia) was all this while neglecting India and keeping it away from anything to do with Afghanistan, despite the fact that right from 2000- till Pakistan captured Kabul in 2021 with the help of its proxy –Taliban, India had played a big role in the development of Afghanistan. New Delhi had been involved in the construction of key infrastructure projects in the country including the parliament building and the Salma dam investing $3 billion in various reconstruction activities.
What will it Achieve.
This meeting will surely achieve following ;
The meeting will affirm that India has a legitimate security interest in Afghanistan.
It will thwart Pakistan’s evil designs to exclude India.
Although it is too early to claim this But it’s a first assertive step to push yourself at the centerstage in bringing a holistic solution to the Afghanistan’s imbroglio.
This would place Beijing in a precarious situation because its non-participation will send a negative signal, and its presence may not please Pakistan.
The presence of NSAs or their equivalents from (CIS) Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, Iran and Russia will dent Pakistan’s propaganda that India is a Game spoiler and is working against the peace process in Kabul. The presence of so many NSAs will give credence to India’s fears from Radical Islam., rather, Each country participating in the meet has similar fears of radical Islam. Most of the former Soviet Republics have little to do with political Islam and have secular governments. Many of them face threats at home from radical groups and want to make sure that these groups do not cross into their countries. The majority of the CIS states are on the same page with India, Russia and Iran on Afghanistan.
Conclusion.
This meet is being organised at a time when ISIS-K has given some solid jolts to Taliban by striking in Kabul ,indicating that Taliban is not yet in a position of control and remains vulnerable even in Kabul . With many such groups jostling for power in Afghanistan the concern of all these NSAs meeting at Delhi is genuine and similar.
On the other hand, Pakistan’s absence will expose its duplicity but Pakistan has been Running with the hare and hunting with the hound for far too long and may be Insha allah its high time that it is punished by the world for Its Duplicity on Terrorism.
.