Taliban's Chabahar bet signals shift from Islamabad to New Delhi

Taliban has warmed up to India to facilitate its global trade as its ties with Pakistan deteriorate and New Delhi-Islamabad relations remain tense.

Eyeing to reduce dependence on Pakistani ports for trade, the Taliban regime has decided to focus on the Chabahar Port in Iran that is managed by India and is exploring to join International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC), according to persons familiar with the issue.

After the Taliban returned to Kabul in 2021, cooperation with Chabahar faced challenges. But as the differences between Kabul and Islamabad intensified, including the expulsion of Afghan refugees, the Taliban turned to cooperation with Iran and India, explained persons familiar with the functioning of the Taliban.

Afghanistan's proximity to Chabahar indicates an effort to diversify foreign policy and reduce dependence on Pakistan. The Chabahar Port is an important transit route between Iran, India and Afghanistan. Taliban officials have visited Tehran to discuss Kabul's role in the project.

According to Russia's top think-tank Valdai Club, which maintains close ties with the Kremlin, the Taliban is trying to convey a message of independence from Pakistan by increasing its role in the Chabahar Port project.

Iran is also seeking to connect Afghanistan with the INSTC with the aim of strengthening its regional position. During Sunday's phone call between the NSAs of India and Iran, the issue of INSTC figured prominently.

Last week, a phone call between external affairs minister S Jaishankar and acting Afghan foreign minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi was the first engagement between an Indian and Taliban minister since 1999, signalling a churning in regional geopolitics.

The recent engagements between India and Taliban beginning with foreign secretary Vikram Misri's meeting with Muttaqi followed by MEA delegation's visit to Kabul after Pahalgam attacks and the ministerial level phone call signal emerging regional dynamics amid Pakistan's interference in both India and Afghanistan, according to persons familiar with India-Afghanistan ties.

The groundwork for this was laid through the opening of India's technical mission in Kabul and visit by JP Singh, India's current envoy to Israel and earlier head of Pakistan-Afghanistan-Iran.