Link to Article: https://apnews.com/article/india-afghanistan-ministers-kabul-humanitarian-7874101f29825dd41a639cfbb3cf685e
This article describes the second meeting of Indian and Afghan delegations since the Taliban have taken control of Afghanistan and its government. Having historically provided significant aid to Afghanistan in the past, India indicated a continued commitment to providing humanitarian aid to the country. Additionally, they discussed how a port in Iran could be used for trade. This meeting takes place in the midst of rising tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan, Pakistan having sent airstrikes to Afghanistan just the week before. Despite meeting with Taliban representatives, India —- in line with every other country — has not officially recognized the Taliban government in Afghanistan as legitimate, claiming they will follow the UN on the issue.
This meeting, if indicative of further relations between India and the new Taliban government of Afghanistan, could further exacerbate tensions between India, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. As even mentioned in the article, India and Pakistan have been long rivals — they’ve fought 3 wars and, in more recent memory, have been a barrier to India providing aid to Afghanistan. Pakistan is very sensitive about India and Pakistan becoming too close of allies; considering the geography of the region, Pakistan would be caught between two unfriendly nations, greatly affecting their sense of security. Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have also become strained, even though relations in the past have been relatively positive (although conflicts surrounding the Durand line have existed for some time). Much of it stems from Pakistan’s own efforts to manage the Pakistan Taliban (TPP).
On India’s part, re-establishing relations with Afghanistan does seem to be the most logical move for their own national interests — Afghanistan is important for trade and functions as a pathway to Central Asia. However, even as the Taliban are unlikely to lose control of Afghanistan any time soon, relations with a terrorist organization inherently carry their own risks. Additionally, collaborating too closely with such a group could reflect poorly on India in any dealings with other countries. For Afghanistan, sustaining positive relations with India gives them a significant advantage if conflict with Pakistan were to worsen. For Pakistan, if relations between India and Afghanistan strengthen, it may be better to refrain from overt offensives and instead focus on defense in the case of further conflict.
This situation is deeply tied to national security and national interests. India has a vested interest in maintaining positive relations with Afghanistan in spite of any potential concerns regarding collaborating with the Taliban or validating their control of the government in any way. As mentioned before, Afghanistan connects India to the markets of Central Asia, allowing them to strengthen their economy. Afghanistan in turn has benefitted from India’s aid, allowing them to better look after their own people and feel more secure knowing they have allies if conflicts with Pakistan were to worsen.