India will host the ‘Regional Security Dialogue on Afghanistan,’ a meeting of the National Security Advisors (NSAs) in the neighbourhood, on November 10. The meeting, chaired by NSA Ajit Doval, will be to discuss the situation in Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover in August. The NSAs participating in the dialogue will also be joined by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The agenda

India will play a key role in building a regional consensus on the current situation and the future outlook of Afghanistan, including recognition of the Taliban administration which toppled the former government in August this year. The meeting may also consider sending emergency food supplies to Afghanistan to help deal with the ongoing food crisis there.

Who will participate?

Several countries in the region, including Afghanistan’s neighbours Pakistan, Tajikistan, Iran, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and other stakeholders like Russia and China have been invited for the in-person meeting. Iran, Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazhakistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan have confirmed their participation. China has agreed to attend the meeting virtually, while Pakistan has declined the invitation. At a press conference in Islamabad last week, Pakistan’s National Security Advisor Moeed Yusuf said: “I will not go, a spoiler can’t be a peacemaker.”

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“Pakistan’s decision is unfortunate, but not surprising. It reflects its mindset of viewing Afghanistan as its protectorate,” a government source told Indian Express, adding that Pakistan’s media comments about India is an attempt to divert attention from its “pernicious role in Afghanistan.”

Earlier conferences

This is the first time India will host an NSA-level meeting. The meeting was scheduled to be held last year but was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Two earlier meetings in this format were held in Iran in September 2018 and December 2019.

Impact of the meeting

Till the fall of Kabul, India had not engaged in discussions with the Taliban through official channels. In recent months, New Delhi held at least two meetings with members of the Taliban. Other countries like Iran and Russia also have engaged in dialogue with the group.

New Delhi was included in some deliberations on Afghanistan’s future but not all -- probably due to Pakistan’s efforts to keep India out of the talks.

China and Russia had sought to discuss the future of Afghanistan without India. “This is an attempt to counter Pakistan’s efforts to exclude us (India)," former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal told Mint.

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India has been instrumental in the construction of key infrastructure projects in Afghanistan between 2001 and 2021. New Delhi pulled out its diplomats from Afghanistan when the Taliban took over the administration.

Meanwhile, media reports have claimed that Afghanistan’s Interim Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi is likely to visit Pakistan in the next few days to reset ties between the two countries.

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(Edited by : Shoma Bhattacharjee)