Mains Practice Questions

Introduction:

Engagement without formal recognition aptly characterises India’s measured and pragmatic approach toward the Taliban-led regime in Afghanistan. While India has refrained from officially recognising the Taliban, it continues limited diplomatic and humanitarian engagement to safeguard its security, economic, and ethical interests. This policy reflects a balance between strategic necessity and moral restraint.

Body :

India’s Security Interests

• Strategic Geopolitical Partnership: India considers Afghanistan vital for regional security and countering adversarial influence, particularly Pakistan’s.
  • Deterioration in Afghan-Pakistan relations influenced India’s strategic calculus for engaging the Taliban as a counterbalance to Pakistan’s regional influence
  • India’s support for the Northern Alliance in the 1990s and its role as one of Afghanistan’s largest regional development partners showcase a long-term strategic commitment.
• Counterterrorism Collaboration: Post-2001, India actively engaged in capacity building of Afghan security forces to prevent Afghanistan from becoming a terror hub.
  • The recent pledge by the Taliban-led Afghan government not to allow the use of Afghan soil against India marks evolving counterterrorism cooperation amid shifting realities.
• Diplomatic Engagement Amid Political Shifts: India’s recent diplomatic outreach to Taliban-led Afghanistan—including upgrading its Kabul mission to full embassy status and hosting Taliban diplomats—demonstrates pragmatic diplomacy balancing recognition hesitancy with ground realities.
  • India-Afghanistan ties counterbalance China’s growing Central Asian influence and Pakistan’s destabilizing activities.
  • India’s participation in regional forums like the Heart of Asia – Istanbul Process further reinforces its role in promoting political cooperation and regional connectivity.
• Security Concerns: Despite diplomatic engagement, terrorism remains a grave challenge.
  • The Taliban’s historic links with terrorist groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed raise fears of Afghanistan serving as a safe haven for anti-India militants.
  • Afghanistan’s position as the world’s largest opium producer, forming the core of the Golden Crescent (Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan), fuels regional instability.

India’s Economic Interests

• Economic and Trade Connectivity: With Afghanistan’s mineral wealth valued between $1-3 trillion, India sees economic opportunities in mining and trade.
  • Enables India to participate in regional forums and infrastructure projects such as Chabahar Port (Iran-Afghanistan-India corridor) to bypass Pakistan and facilitate trade.
• Safeguarding Development and Reconstruction Contributions: India has invested heavily in infrastructure projects: Salma Dam, Zaranj-Delaram highway (strategic trade route bypassing Pakistan), Kabul’s parliament building, hospitals, and power substations, showing India’s commitment to Afghan development as a form of soft power.
  • A stable Afghanistan is essential for India’s “Connect Central Asia” policy, Chabahar Port project, and the International North–South Transport Corridor (INSTC).
• Economic and Infrastructure Challenges: Afghanistan remains one of the world’s poorest countries.
  • Security concerns impede India’s multiple investment projects, such as the Salma Dam and the Kabul parliament.
  • Also,China’s expanding role in Afghanistan, including dialogue with the Taliban and infrastructure investments, presents a strategic challenge for India.

Ethical and Humanitarian Dimensions

• Balancing values and realism: India faces the dilemma of upholding democratic and human rights principles while ensuring humanitarian support for the Afghan people.
  • Recognising the Taliban would contradict India’s commitment to gender equality and inclusive governance.
• Support for Afghan women and minorities: While India continues to advocate education and rights for women, the lack of formal recognition limits its ability to influence human rights reforms within Afghanistan.
  • The exclusion of women journalists during the 2025 Taliban visit to India sparked criticism but underscored India’s challenge to balance ethical concerns with diplomacy.
• Moral leadership: India’s cautious stance aligns with its global image as a responsible democracy, showing empathy without legitimising an oppressive regime.

Strategic Steps Should India Take to Strengthen ties with Afghanistan

• Sustain Diplomatic Engagement while Withholding Full Recognition: India should continue to maintain and deepen official channels (full embassy, regular diplomatic exchanges) without immediate political recognition.
• Expand Targeted Development & Humanitarian Diplomacy: India should continue to counter the rising Chinese influence by expanding capacity-building aid, infrastructure cooperation, and diplomatic engagement, maintaining strategic autonomy—a principle highlighted in India’s foreign policy doctrines like “Act East” and “Neighbourhood First.”
• Strengthen Counter-terrorism Cooperation: Drawing from the 2011 Strategic Partnership Agreement, India should continue to support Afghan security capacity-building programs, reflecting international best practices for counterterrorism cooperation.
• Secure Economic Connectivity & Geoeconomic Options: Expand trade and investment via alternative routes and projects that bypass hostile transit and pursue resource-sector partnerships with clear safeguards.
  • For instance, Economic engagement through the use of Chabahar Port, resumption of the India-Afghanistan Air Freight Corridor (2025),etc.
• Multilateral & Regional Cooperation to Share Burden and Legitimacy: Work through Heart of Asia, SCO, Moscow Format, UN and partner countries (Iran, Central Asian states) for coordinated aid, counterterror, and reconstruction plans.
• Advocacy for Social, Gender, and Human Rights Concerns: India’s engagement strategy may resemble EU’s cautious diplomacy with countries under authoritarian rule, where aid is conditional on reforms.
  • At the same time, India should continue to expand scholarships, vocational training, cultural exchanges, and media/communication outreach that reach ordinary Afghans.

Conclusion:

India-Afghanistan relations today reflect strategic pragmatism blended with deep historical ties. As Harsh Pant(Foreign Policy Expert) observes, “Engagement does not equate to endorsement,” highlighting India’s delicate balance between principled concerns and realpolitik. The path forward demands patient, principled engagement, robust humanitarian aid, and multilateral collaboration to safeguard India’s interests while supporting Afghanistan’s peace and progress.