Days before the Taliban marks five years in power with a Victory Day reception at its Delhi embassy, the Ministry of External Affairs weighed in on where things currently stand between India and Afghanistan.
At Friday’s briefing, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal was asked about the reception. These, he added, had helped push forward cooperation on trade, connectivity and development work. He also invoked India’s old relationship with the Afghan people, saying New Delhi wants to keep building on it.
His answer stuck to familiar ground, India and Afghanistan, he said, have seen a string of engagements over the past year or so, including several ministerial visits from Kabul.
New Delhi still hasn’t recognised that government, a position it shares with most of the world. But it has, for a while now, let the Taliban operate out of the Afghan embassy here. And this year, officials indicate, India’s role in the celebrations could go beyond a formality. Senior officials may actually show up. That’s a notable departure from the years just after the takeover, when India largely avoided the Taliban and, for a stretch, pulled its own staff out of Kabul altogether. India has stood by Kabul in its border dispute with Pakistan. None of this happened overnight.
Over the last year, the two governments have been fairly public about backing each other. The Taliban has returned the favour on Kashmir, going so far as to co-sign a statement last year that referred to J&K as part of India and condemned the Pahalgam attack, a line that didn’t sit well in Islamabad. India reopened a technical mission in Kabul last year, and has since let Taliban-appointed diplomats take charge of the Afghan mission in Delhi, all without extending formal recognition. The relationship picked up further after Afghan foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi visited India earlier last year, a trip many read as a turning point.
