'Strategic opportunity for India': Ex-foreign secretary defends Afghan FM's Delhi visit
Afghan FM Amir Khan Muttaqi is in India for a six-day visit, marking the first time a senior Taliban official has visited the country since the group took control of Afghanistan four years ago
- Oct 12, 2025,
- Updated Oct 12, 2025 2:50 PM IST
Former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal on Sunday defended India's engagement with the Taliban, saying there is a strategic opportunity that now exists to protect its interests in the evolving regional politics. "Why reduce India's outreach to Afghanistan in this background to point scoring in party politics," Sibal said while responding to Congress communication in-charge Jairam Ramesh.
On Saturday, Ramesh suggested that Congress would be under fire if it had engaged the Taliban in a similar manner. "Imagine if a Congress Govt had reached out to the Taliban in the manner in which the Modi Govt has done: what the reaction of the BJP and its ecosystem would have been," he wrote on X.
Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi is in India for a six-day visit, marking the first time a senior Taliban official has visited the country since the group took control of Afghanistan four years ago. His visit comes at a time of tense regional dynamics, with India and Afghanistan both expressing concerns over Pakistan-related cross-border terrorism.
Sibal defended Muttaqi's visit to New Delhi, saying geopolitics in the region has changed and India is trying to leverage it to its advantage. "During Congress rule, Pakistan and the Taliban were in league with each other and the concern was that the Taliban in power in Afghanistan would aggravate the terror threat to us," he said.
"In the event, Pakistan and the Taliban have fallen apart. Pakistan has not only failed to obtain strategic depth in Afghanistan, Pak-Afghan ties have come under great strain, with the TTP wreaking havoc in border areas in Pakistan, Afghan-Pakistan exchanging fire and having border clashes," Sibal added.
"The Taliban have repeatedly assured us that Afghan soil will not be allowed to be used for terror attacks against any country. That promise has been kept so far. The Taliban are keen on development cooperation with India. Should India ignore the strategic opportunity that now exists to protect its interests in the evolving regional politics centred on Afghanistan in which China is active too," the former foreign secretary said.
On Saturday, Muttaqi expressed confidence that India-Afghanistan ties will grow stronger during his visit to Darul Uloom Deoband in Saharanpur, one of South Asia's most influential Islamic seminaries. Kabul will soon send its diplomats to India as part of "step-by-step" efforts to improve bilateral relations, Muttaqi said on Friday. He also asserted that the Taliban will not allow anyone to use Afghan soil against other countries.
Former foreign secretary Kanwal Sibal on Sunday defended India's engagement with the Taliban, saying there is a strategic opportunity that now exists to protect its interests in the evolving regional politics. "Why reduce India's outreach to Afghanistan in this background to point scoring in party politics," Sibal said while responding to Congress communication in-charge Jairam Ramesh.
On Saturday, Ramesh suggested that Congress would be under fire if it had engaged the Taliban in a similar manner. "Imagine if a Congress Govt had reached out to the Taliban in the manner in which the Modi Govt has done: what the reaction of the BJP and its ecosystem would have been," he wrote on X.
Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi is in India for a six-day visit, marking the first time a senior Taliban official has visited the country since the group took control of Afghanistan four years ago. His visit comes at a time of tense regional dynamics, with India and Afghanistan both expressing concerns over Pakistan-related cross-border terrorism.
Sibal defended Muttaqi's visit to New Delhi, saying geopolitics in the region has changed and India is trying to leverage it to its advantage. "During Congress rule, Pakistan and the Taliban were in league with each other and the concern was that the Taliban in power in Afghanistan would aggravate the terror threat to us," he said.
"In the event, Pakistan and the Taliban have fallen apart. Pakistan has not only failed to obtain strategic depth in Afghanistan, Pak-Afghan ties have come under great strain, with the TTP wreaking havoc in border areas in Pakistan, Afghan-Pakistan exchanging fire and having border clashes," Sibal added.
"The Taliban have repeatedly assured us that Afghan soil will not be allowed to be used for terror attacks against any country. That promise has been kept so far. The Taliban are keen on development cooperation with India. Should India ignore the strategic opportunity that now exists to protect its interests in the evolving regional politics centred on Afghanistan in which China is active too," the former foreign secretary said.
On Saturday, Muttaqi expressed confidence that India-Afghanistan ties will grow stronger during his visit to Darul Uloom Deoband in Saharanpur, one of South Asia's most influential Islamic seminaries. Kabul will soon send its diplomats to India as part of "step-by-step" efforts to improve bilateral relations, Muttaqi said on Friday. He also asserted that the Taliban will not allow anyone to use Afghan soil against other countries.