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Eye on Taliban: India to host regional summit on Afghanistan on November 10
Pakistan was invited to the Delhi Regional Security Dialogue on Afghanistan, but the country’s National Security Adviser (NSA), Moeed Yusuf, has said he will not attend
India will host the Delhi Regional Security Dialogue on Afghanistan on November 10, bringing together senior security officials of regional countries to discuss developments in Kabul following the Taliban takeover, people familiar with the matter said on Friday.
India had formally invited the NSAs of Russia, Iran, China, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan for the meeting.
However, Pakistan’s National Security Adviser (NSA), Moeed Yusuf, on Tuesday, said he will not attend. A formal response to an invitation to China is also awaited, people familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity on Friday.
Islamabad’s decision is not being perceived as a dampener in New Delhi, as Russia, Iran and key Central Asian states have confirmed their participation in the meeting that will be chaired by India’s NSA Ajit Doval.
This will also be the first time that all Central Asian countries – and not just Afghanistan’s immediate land neighbours, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan – are participating in discussions in this format, the people cited above said.
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“There has been an overwhelming response to India’s invitation,” one of the people said.
“The enthusiastic response is a manifestation of the importance attached to India’s role in regional efforts to promote peace and security in Afghanistan,” the person said.
Two earlier meetings in this format were held in Iran in September 2018 and December 2019. The third meeting in India could not be held as scheduled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The upcoming meeting is being seen as part of Indian efforts to remain relevant in addressing the fallout of the developments in Afghanistan.
Though Pakistan has not formally responded to India’s invitation to the meeting, Yusuf told a news briefing in Islamabad on Tuesday that he would not attend.
“I will not be going,” Yusuf said after a meeting with his Uzbek counterpart Victor Makhmudov.
“A spoiler cannot try to be a peacemaker,” he added, in an apparent reference to India. Yusuf also told the briefing that Pakistan has identified India as a hurdle to regional efforts to establish peace and security.
The person cited above described Pakistan’s decision as “unfortunate but not surprising”.
The person added, “It reflects [Pakistan’s] mindset of viewing Afghanistan as its protectorate. Pakistan has not attended the previous meetings of this format.”
Yusuf’s comments against India were an unsuccessful attempt to deflect attention from Pakistan’s “pernicious role in Afghanistan”, the person said.
The high-level participation in the upcoming meeting also reflects the widespread and growing concern of regional countries about the situation in Afghanistan and their desire to consult and coordinate with each other, the people said. India has an important role to play in this process, they added.
The Indian government has cautioned the global community not to rush into any formal recognition of the set-up created in Kabul by the Taliban following the group’s takeover of the country in mid-August. It has also urged the international community to ensure that the Taliban deliver on their commitments that Afghan soil will not be used by terror groups, especially Pakistan-based organisations such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed.
Islamabad has also not acted on New Delhi’s proposal to ship 50,000 tonnes of wheat as humanitarian aid to Afghanistan via Pakistani soil. India has insisted that all humanitarian assistance for the Afghan people should be routed through the UN and international organisations and distributed without discrimination.
