Summary: As the Taliban wreaks havoc having taken over Afghanistan, Russia and India have commonly agreed to join forces to secure bordering central Asian countries from further takeover. This was agreed during NSA level consultations on Wednesday between Ajit Doval and Nikolay Patrushev. It has been expressed that the Taliban has plans underway to use Afghanistan to promote the Sharia lifestyle, with support from Pakistan and Turkey. As Pakistan and Turkey governments prove a growing alliance with the Taliban, further spread of Islamic extremism is at extremely high threat. The Russian government has expressed that the situation in Central Asia is under control, but may pose threat as the Taliban becomes eager to spread their values across neighboring countries.
Analysis: This is a further advance in the Russia-Indo strategic partnership that has been in the works for decades. Two superpowers coming together to defend smaller central Asian countries like Tajikistan, could be successful with the capability of both countries military. It is actually quite interesting that Russia and India are partnering in this situation, as recently it seems more like relations were starting to deteriorate due to India’s anti-China stance. This should be really impactful to their relationship and intergovernmental operations, hopefully in a positive way, but potentially not as China and India relations also experience ongoing conflict in coming years. If China decides to get involved in Afghanistan, it would be very intriguing to see the conflicts and situation between the three superpowers that are India, China and Russia, who all have varying stances and relationships. What many people and I hope for, is that Russia and India can put external conflicts aside and come together to create a firewall against the Taliban and protect Central Asian countries and citizens.
How does this relate to IR: This event is very relevant to International relations because it involves alliances, conflicts , and agreements between nations. This is a very consistent theme of importance throughout the study of International relations, as you need to know how different countries interact and why. It also relates to the theme of restoring order in the world, as India and Russia make the very important decision to align to combat the takeover of other countries, which is an essential act in restoring order. India and Russia are both very important global actors, and it is essential to understand their relations and history, especially how those relations affect other actors on the global stage as well, like China and Afghanistan.