What are the reasons for Pakistan rejecting India’s invitation to the Regional National Security Advisors’ Conference?
the story So Far: Nearly three months after Taliban’s takeover of Kabul, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval will host NSA meeting In the neighborhood (including Russia) on 10 November to discuss the future of Afghanistan and how to deal with the security threats posed by developments there. The exercise is to reaffirm the consensus that after the withdrawal of US and NATO troops from Afghanistan, the solution to the crisis in Afghanistan must come from the region itself.
Is everyone invited?
Invitations were sent to Mr. Doval’s counterparts in China, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Confirmation has been received from all except China and Pakistan, and while Indian officials are still expected to attend the conference of Chinese State Security Minister Chen Wenqing or another security official, Pakistan’s NSA Moeed Yusuf has said that he will not attend the conference, that a decision Government sources said ‘unfortunate’.
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What’s on the agenda?
The conference, which is part of a draft held in Iran in September 2018 and December 2019, is expected to discuss how to approach the Taliban regime, particularly on the demand for an inclusive government in Afghanistan with the rights of women and minorities. . While no country has yet recognized the Taliban regime led by “Prime Minister” Hassan Akhund, all countries involved, including India, are engaging Taliban officials at various levels. China, Iran, Pakistan and Russia have also kept their embassies open in Kabul, while Central Asian countries have exchanged delegations for official meetings with the Taliban regime. India also expects to focus on the triple common threats to the neighbors arising from the Taliban takeover: an increase in terrorist groups operating within Afghanistan, an increase in drug trafficking, and refugees due to the humanitarian crisis unfolding there. the arrival of India has also been involved in connectivity projects for Afghanistan and Central Asia, including the Chabahar port project in Iran and the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India gas pipeline, and the conference will be closely watched for any results from pursuing these projects. . New regime in Kabul.
Ultimately, New Delhi seeks to establish that despite opposition from the Taliban regime to replace the democratically elected Ashraf Ghani government, it remains a development, aid and trade partner in the future of Afghanistan and a historic builder of connectivity infrastructure. As an important person remains. In the past, India has not been included in many discussion formats on Afghanistan, apparently at the behest of Pakistan, such as the two-year Sino-Russia-US-Pakistan ‘Troika Plus’ talks on Afghanistan held in October. Neighboring foreign ministers track. 27 and regional meetings organized by the Foreign Minister of Pakistan and the NSA in the last few months. The meeting in Delhi will try to present India as an essential part of these dialogues. In doing so, New Delhi reasserts its claims as a “border neighbour”, given that Afghanistan annexes Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
Why was Pakistan invited?
Relations between New Delhi and Islamabad have been on a downward trajectory for the past few years, and formal contact has been cut after the events of 2019, including the Pulwama attack, the Balakot attack and the reorganization of Jammu and Kashmir by the government. India has long recognized that it is Pakistan’s “malignant” influence and support of terrorist groups that are the real cause of Afghanistan’s instability and violence, and in September at the UNGA on Pakistan in Afghanistan “disguised as a firefighter”. accused of being However, Mr Doval has reportedly been involved in back-channel talks with Pakistani security and military officials over the past two years, which led to a ceasefire in February 2021. It was probably thought that there was a security conference of neighbors on Afghanistan. Pakistani participation should also be looked at. The Narendra Modi government has participated in several conferences on regional security and Afghanistan in particular, where Pakistani officials are present, including the Shanghai Cooperation Organization meeting in Tashkent, the Moscow format and the Central Asia-South Asia Dialogue. Earlier this year, India sent a three-member team to the SCO-Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) meeting in Pakistan.
Rejecting the invitation, Mr Yusuf accused India of being a “spoiler” in Afghanistan, adding that a “spoiler cannot play peacemaker”. However, Pakistan seems to have played a role of spoiler in the NSA conference, according to Indian officials, by rejecting the invitation and allowing humanitarian aid of wheat and medicines by road from Wagah to Torkham to help the Afghans. refused to respond to the request. great need.
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