India should do everything possible to help Afghan govt
India’s standing in world affairs is getting enhanced. This is borne out by the fact that despite Pakistan’s all-out efforts to block India’s participation in a multinational meeting recently in Moscow, India was sent an invite and attended this meeting.
New Delhi was represented by two ex-diplomats, instead of serving ones. Afghanistan had sent a representative group from their High Peace Council established to deal with Taliban separatists and their demands.
Representatives of all other major powers having a stake in Afghanistan, including Russia, China, the USA, Pakistan and even the Taliban, were present in this Moscow meeting on Afghanistan.
What stands out for India is that from 1990 till 2000, India was effectively sidelined by Pakistan on all matters concerning Afghanistan. From 1990 to 1994, after the departure of Russia from Afghanistan, it was Pakistan, which created the Taliban out of the Pashtun tribe and waged a war against the local warlords. The Pakistani troops operated tanks, artillery and what have you. By 1994, Afghanistan up to Kabul fell under the influence of the Taliban. The Northern Alliance, aided by India, Russia and Iran, held sway north of Kabul.
After 9/11, the USA attacked the Taliban and threw it out of Afghanistan. Since then, the top leadership of Taliban are lording it over Quetta, the capital of Pakistan’s Baluchistan. They live in safe houses provided by the Pakistani Army and their intelligence agency ISI.
For reasons best known to it, the USA did not take strong action against the dual game of the Pakistan which provided sanctuary to the Haqqani network in its territory. The Haqqani network crossed the Pakistan-Afghan border to kill American troops operating in Afghanistan.
Some sanity did come to the USA regarding Pakistan and its army when in 2011, Al Qaida chief Osama Bin Laden, whom America was hunting all over the world, was found hiding in the Pakistani military town of Abbottabad in a safe house provided by ISI. The Americans killed him in a raid. After the arrival of President Trump on the scene, the US has shown some toughness against Pakistan. He has stopped all aid to Pakistan and has been demanding from Pakistan that it should stop helping the Afghan Taliban and bring it to the negotiating table. Trump also wants the Pakistani military to take action against the Haqqani network of Taliban. So far, Pakistan has been paying lip service to these issues, including the American request of bringing Taliban to the negotiating table. Pakistan is reluctant to do America’s bidding because it has sensed that the USA wants to withdraw lock, stock and barrel from Afghanistan at the earliest after a face-saving settlement. For Pakistan, Afghanistan is its back yard. It wants Taliban to get three-fourth share of power in Afghanistan. It knows that once the USA leaves, it will be child’s play for the Taliban to get full power in Afghanistan.
The Taliban maintained a hard line at the Moscow conference, saying that talks will only be held after American troops leave Afghanistan and that they must be compensated for the loss of opium cultivation.
It should by now be clear to America that the Taliban is in no mood to compromise. If the USA really wants a solution in Afghanistan, it must announce officially that American troops, numbering about 15,000, are not going to withdraw from Afghanistan for long time to come.
Also, instead of antagonising Iran by levying economic restrictions on it, US must reach a compromise with Tehran, so that supplies for the US troops in Afghanistan go through the Chabahar port developed by India in Iran, bypassing Pakistan.
Or else, America must force Saudi Arabia, the purse string controller of the almost bankrupt Pakistan, to act against the Afghan Taliban and Haqqani network as the USA wants. The US is making a big mistake by being soft on Pakistan and still expecting it to act against the Taliban. India has earned tremendous goodwill in Afghanistan by doing genuine development work in various fields.
In addition, India is training a large number of Afghan security forces in India. India has gifted a lot of arms, including helicopter gunships, to Afghan security forces. Overall, India must cash in on the very good rapport that it enjoys with the Afghan government and its people. Short of getting militarily involved, we must do everything possible to help the Afghan government. BRIGADIER (RETD)
ARUN BAJPAI