Pentagon report a fillip to India’s Afghanistan policy

The analysis is crucial as it comes when geopolitical equations are being rewritten

The half-yearly Pentagon report on the status of Afghanistan has declared India the most reliable friend of the Kabul regime. This is merely a statement of fact: Even the United States has been wayward in comparison to the continuity that has marked Indian support. The report’s importance lies in its timing. It is the first one released under the Donald Trump presidency and is taking place as the geopolitical playbook in Afghanistan is once again being rewritten. All the evidence points to the US recommitting itself to upholding the Kabul government. While Mr Trump believes the US must get out of Afghanistan eventually, he has rejected his predecessor’s illconceived public deadlines for withdrawal. Washington today accepts that only strength on the battlefield will convince the Taliban to hold sincere talks. All of this is music to India’s ears.

At the start of the year the Afghan government was unusually isolated. Iran and Russia, traditional opponents of the Taliban and Pakistan, began shifting to a view that undermining the US in Afghanistan and wooing Pakistan made more sense. Kabul’s regional allies were reduced to India and a few Central Asian governments.

The US’ final Afghan policy is still awaited. The great game, in any case, is changing again. Iran and Pakistan have seen relations sour after violence on their border. India will seek to encourage the US to ensure its tough stance against the Taliban encompass Pakistan as well. In all this, New Delhi’s commitment to Kabul, as the Pentagon acknowledged, is notable for its stability. Afghanistan was known as the graveyard of empires. Today this should be updated to the graveyard of grand strategies. Which is one reason India is right to keep its Afghan policy short and simple: Support an independent Kabul regime.