India-Afghanistan relations ~ Group Discussion Ideas

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Theme:

On 31st August 2021, India held its first meeting with the Taliban in Doha. After the Taliban took over Afghanistan, this is the first time India officially met the Taliban.

India-Afghanistan relations:

In 1950, India and Afghanistan signed a 5-year treaty of friendship. In 1996, when the Taliban came to power, India didn’t have good relations with the government. After the US overthrew the Taliban in 2001, India took part in the development of Afghanistan and invested 3 billion dollars in building infrastructure in the country. India had very good relations with Afghanistan from 2001-2021.
Bilateral trade between India and Afghanistan has crossed the US$1.5 billion in the financial year 2019-2020.
Now, a senior leader of the Taliban has said that they want to have good relations and trade with India.
Under operation Devi Shakti, India has been evacuating Indian citizens and foreign nationals from Afghanistan after the Taliban took over the country.
India did not give recognition to Taliban rule yet.
But, as the Taliban are closely associated with Pakistan, India is apprehensive about the future of India-Afghanistan relations. Moreover, China is a friend of Pakistan and hence both Pakistan and China may influence key decisions in Afghanistan that can impact Indo-Afghan relations.
India and the world countries are waiting and watching how the Taliban regime evolve this time. All the countries want the Taliban to respect human rights. Only then, many countries will approach the Taliban for the continuation of trade and other relations.

Conclusion:

Until the Taliban took over Afghanistan, India had very good relations with the country. Now, the Taliban also announced that it looks forward to having good relations with India. India and the other countries are observing how the Taliban regime works, and whether it upholds human rights. With the announcements from the world countries, it is evident that all the countries will maintain relations with the Taliban led Afghanistan, only when it upholds democracy and human rights in the country.

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