Following the example of Moscow: India is moving closer to Afghanistan

India followed Russia's example and raised the level of relations with Afghanistan by converting a small technical mission in the country into an embassy. This will help the Taliban, which governs the country after the US withdrawal in 2021, to strengthen its position in the international arena, experts believe. In addition, Kabul will receive a large package of humanitarian aid from India, which includes financing several socially significant projects. The current normalization is beneficial to Russia. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.

For the first time in four years

Indian Foreign Minister Subramaniam Jaishankar and his Afghan counterpart Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaki met in New Delhi. The Indian Foreign Minister reaffirmed the country's commitment to the "sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Afghanistan."

"Closer cooperation between us contributes to national development, as well as regional stability and sustainability," Jaishankar said. He also thanked Muttaki, who invited Indian companies to participate in the development of minerals in Afghanistan.

"We have common interests in expanding trade and commerce," the Indian Foreign Minister stressed. He also added that the parties need to join forces in the "fight against terrorism."

Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Kaishankar presents a symbolic key after donating ambulances to Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaki in New Delhi, India.

Photo: x.com/S . Jaishankar

The Afghan minister, in turn, promised not to allow the use of the territory of Afghanistan against other states.

Over the years, India has funded and implemented numerous infrastructure projects throughout Afghanistan. The volume of bilateral trade between the two countries reached $890 million last year.

A joint statement following the meeting said that India "will further deepen its involvement in various projects, especially in the field of healthcare and public infrastructure."

Vaccination of children in one of the hospitals in Kabul

Photo: TASS/EPA/BILAWAL ARBAB

In particular, New Delhi will transfer 20 ambulances, various medical equipment, vaccines and medicines to Afghanistan. In addition, the Indian authorities are considering the possibility of providing scholarships for Afghan students.

Muttaki's trip was the first visit by a senior Afghan official to India after the change of power in Afghanistan in August 2021, at the same time India closed its embassy in Kabul. In 2022, the diplomatic mission resumed its work with the help of a small technical mission.

This time, the Indian Foreign Minister announced the "upgrade of the status of the Indian technical mission in Kabul to the Indian Embassy." New Delhi is thus following the path of Moscow.

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On the way of the Russian Federation

Prior to that, India, together with the participants of the Moscow format of consultations on Afghanistan, which took place on October 7 in the Russian capital, reaffirmed its support for the establishment of Afghanistan as an "independent, unified and peaceful state without the presence of any foreign troops on the territory of the country."

The current meeting was another indication that the Indian authorities are determined to normalize relations with Kabul, even though New Delhi has not yet officially recognized the Taliban government.

Amir Khan Mottaki, Minister of Foreign Affairs in the interim Government of Afghanistan formed by the Taliban movement, after the seventh meeting of the Moscow format of consultations on Afghanistan. October 7, 2025

Photo: TASS/Mikhail Sinitsyn

Meanwhile, the improvement of relations between Afghanistan and India is taking place against the background of a new phase of tension between Kabul and Islamabad. On the night of October 10, the Pakistani military conducted an operation on the territory of a neighboring country. The escalation is connected with Pakistan's attempt to destroy the leader of one of the anti-government armed groups, who was hiding in Afghanistan.

The Afghan authorities accused Pakistan of violating the airspace and launching strikes on the border areas. After that, clashes began along the "Durand Line", the border between the two countries established back in 1893. Kabul conducted a "retaliation operation" in which dozens of Pakistani soldiers were killed.

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What do the experts think

Omar Nessar, a researcher at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, noted in an interview with Izvestia that India, having its own strategic vision, is playing its own, much more complex game on the Afghan chessboard.

— Her moves are primarily a response to the rapidly changing geopolitical configuration around her historical antagonist, Pakistan. However, the key question that is being hushed up in the expert community today sounds alarming: what will be the score for Afghanistan itself and the whole of Central Asia? There is already a paradoxical and extremely dangerous alignment," the political scientist believes.

Funeral of a Paxitan soldier who died during clashes with Taliban fighters

Photo: TASS/EPA/BASIT GILANI

According to him, the Taliban government is deepening the confrontation with Islamabad.

— And this creates a vicious cycle of destabilization. This tension is not only rocking the already fragile military and political situation inside the country, but also dealing a blow to the future of the region. Large—scale infrastructure projects designed to connect Central Asia with the South Seas through Afghan territory are under attack," the analyst explained.

According to the expert, in fact, "a time bomb is being laid for the economic revival of the whole of Eurasia."

— In this complex puzzle, the main challenge lies on the shoulders of the Taliban government. Will they be able, maneuvering between New Delhi and Islamabad, to find the most delicate balance that will save Afghanistan from new isolation and sliding into the abyss of conflict? — the expert wonders.

A queue of trucks at a closed checkpoint on the Afghan-Pakistani border

Photo: REUTERS/Saeed Ali Achakzai

Alexey Kupriyanov, head of the Center for the Indian Ocean Region of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Izvestia that this would help Afghanistan strengthen its position in the international arena.

— Afghans in general have great sympathy for India. The Taliban themselves have repeatedly stated that they are ready to restore relations with India, it's only up to New Delhi. In addition, both India and Afghanistan have territorial problems with Pakistan," the indologist emphasized.

He added that Kabul is interested in Indian investments and the return of Indian companies.

— So, there is a mutual interest. Russia, in turn, needs a calm and stable Afghanistan, integrated into the common space of Eurasian security, trade and political interaction," the political scientist concluded.