MONITORING (SW) – India has for the first time opened channels of communication with Afghan Taliban factions and leaders, including Mullah Baradar, against the backdrop of the rapid draw-down of US forces from Afghanistan, the Hindustan Times reported.
As per the report, the move marks a significant shift from New Delhi’s position of not engaging with the Afghan Taliban in any way and comes at a time when key world powers are veering around to the position that the Taliban will play some part in any future dispensation in Kabul.
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The outreach is largely being led by Indian security officials and has been limited to Taliban factions and leaders that are perceived as being “nationalist” or outside the sphere of influence of Pakistan and Iran, one of the people cited above said on condition of anonymity. The outreach has been underway for some months, though it continues to be exploratory in nature, it reported.
In the case of Mullah Baradar, the co-founder of the Afghan Taliban and one of the group’s main negotiators, a person with knowledge told HT that messages were exchanged by the two sides though there was no confirmation of a meeting. There have also been conversations with other Taliban factions despite a lack of trust on both sides, the people said.
There was no formal response from the external affairs ministry on these developments.
The people also said sharp differences remained between India’s position on matters such as preserving the gains made in Afghanistan under a democratic system, including the rights of women and minorities, and the Taliban’s insistence on establishing an Islamic emirate.
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