India Will Consider Engaging in Development Projects With Afghanistan in the Near Future

�New Delhi: In a major move signifying strengthening of engagement with the Taliban regime in Kabul, New Delhi on Wednesday announced that foreign secretary Vikram Misri had a meeting with the “acting foreign minister of Afghanistan” Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi in Dubai during which “it was decided that India will consider engaging in development projects in the near future, in addition to the ongoing humanitarian assistance programme”.

“In response to the request from the Afghan side, India will provide further material support in the first instance to the health sector and for the rehabilitation of refugees,” New Delhi said, adding that the Afghan minister thanked the Indian leadership for continuing support.

In addition, “it was also agreed to promote the use of Chabahar port for supporting trade and commercial activities, including for the purpose of humanitarian assistance for Afghanistan,” New Delhi said.

At the meeting, the Afghan side “underlined its sensitivities to India's security concerns”, NewDelhi further said. The two sides also “discussed strengthening of sports (cricket) cooperation, which is highly valued by the young generation of Afghanistan”.

During the meeting on Wednesday, apart from bilateral ties, the two sides also discussed “regional developments". The meeting was held two days after India had condemned the recent Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan civilians, saying that it is an "old practice" of Islamabad to "blame neighbours for its internal failures".

In its statement on the meeting, New Delhi said, “The foreign secretary underlined India’s historic friendship with the Afghan people and the strong people-to-people contacts between the two countries. In this context, he conveyed India’s readiness to respond to the urgent developmental needs of the Afghan people."

At the meeting, the two sides evaluated the ongoing Indian humanitarian assistance programmes. India has so far dispatched several shipments consisting of 50,000 MTs of wheat, 300 tonnes of medicines, 27 tonnes of earthquake relief aid, 40,000 litres of pesticides, 100 million polio doses, 1.5 million doses of COVID vaccine, 11,000 units of hygiene kits for the drug de-addiction programme, 500 units of winter clothing and 1.2 tonnes of stationery kits, etc. The two sides agreed to remain in touch and continue regular contacts at various levels.

This strengthening of engagement with the Taliban regime in Kabul is taking place despite the fact that New Delhi has still not yet formally recognised the Taliban regime diplomatically.

The developments are significant, given that this means that India may resume its infrastructure project work in the strife-torn nation soon.

India had spent at least Rs20,000 crores in the two decades from 2001 to 2021 on various infrastructure projects in Afghanistan but halted the assistance when the (Afghan) Taliban militia, aided by Pakistan, had swept to power in Kabul in August 2021. The Taliban takeover then led to the collapse of the erstwhile Afghan government led by then president Ashraf Ghani, who fled.

Following the Taliban takeover, India had initially pulled out all its diplomats from Kabul. All Indian personnel working on infrastructure projects in the strife-torn nation also left. New Delhi had subsequently established a "technical team" or “technical mission” there at the Indian embassy since June 2022. With India continuing to pump in large amounts of humanitarian assistance, including wheat, New Delhi’s relations with the Taliban seem to have greatly improved.