📅: 24^th Jun 2021    ⌚ : 20 Minutes   

Topics covered from the syllabus: GS-2: India and its neighborhood-relations. Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.

Note

• Following is the summary of 'The Big Picture' discussion, which was aired on RSTV.
• Host: Vishal Dahiya
• Panellists: Prof Harsh V. Pant, Observer Research Foundation; Prabhu Dayal, Former Ambassador.
• Please note that some inputs have been given by our team in order to make the topic more relevant to UPSC.

Context

• Recently, the Indian External Affairs Minister pressed for a permanent solution to the violence happening in Afghanistan. He said that there is a need for an all-encompassing ceasefire to save lives and further the prospects for development in the country.
• India also reiterated the need for having a 'zero-tolerance policy' towards terrorism.

Prelims Focus

Heart of Asia Conference: It is a global initiative to redevelop the war-torn Afghanistan by introducing Confidence-Building Measures (CBMs) as well as financial commitments from the global community. It involves 14 participating countries, 16 supporting countries and 12 International Organizations. India is also a member of the grouping. It was initiated in 2011 by Afghanistan and Turkey.

Mains Focus

Indian Perspective on Afghan Peace Process

• Afghan-led, Afghan-controlled and Afghan-owned Inclusive Peace Process: India has called for involving all stakeholders within the Afghan community in pursuance of peace by initiating a dialogue process. This is critical to ensure a durable peace involving an all-party consensus in the country, especially in the context of almost 19-year long negotiations, which Prof. Harsh V Pant rightly calls ‘More process and Less Peace’.
• Idea of Double Peace: India has been advocating the need for peace within Afghanistan as well as peace in the external environment of Afghanistan. However, the presence of Pakistan as the neighbour of Afghanistan has led to impeding the peace process. Pakistan has been using Taliban to carry out terrorist activities in pursuance of its political interests.
• Role of United Nations: India sees a bigger role of United Nations in the Afghan peace process as an influencer of peace. It has prescribed a larger role of the international community in putting pressure on the regional players and other stakeholders towards finding a solution with the objective of durable peace in the region.
• Economic and Social Development: India has emphasized on greater involvement of the international community, including raising the financial commitments under the Heart of Asia Conference (see inset) for faster rebuilding in Afghanistan. India, itself, has made contributions to the tune of $3 billion to Afghan redevelopment including:
  • Building the Afghan parliament as a gift from India, the largest democracy, to Afghanistan.
  • Construction of Salma dam (also known as India-Afghan friendship dam) in Herat province.
  • Building of Zaranj-Delaram highway to improve connectivity in the country.
  • Setting up health infrastructure including a hospital in the country.
  • Sending mid-day meal to the schools of Afghanistan.
  • Scholarships to the Afghan students for studying in India.
  • Vocational training to Afghan women.
• Qatar’s invitation to India: Last Year, Doha invited India to witness the signing of the US-Taliban Peace deal in Doha. This signals a rapprochement between India and Taliban as no such proposal would have been possible without consensus from all stakeholders including Taliban. Therefore, it can be inferred that India has sufficient soft power in Afghanistan by virtue of its developmental works.

Challenges in Afghan Peace Process

• Inherent Complexities: The Afghan dialogue has been riddled with the presence of multiple stakeholders including the Afghan government, Taliban, Haqqani Network and various tribes existing in the region. This complicates the process due to conflicting viewpoints and divergence in opinion on the direction the dialogue process should take.
• Role of External Actors: Apart from the internal variations, Afghanistan is also interference from various other countries including Pakistan, US, China and other actors like Pakistan’s ISI. This complicates the process with some groups pulling the peace process in different directions as per their self-interest and others intent on sabotaging the peace process by getting involved with non-state actors.
• Role of Pakistan: The international community has outlined the role of Pakistan in promoting terror groups like Taliban for meeting its own political ends. International media has criticized Pakistan for its intentions of toppling the Afghan government and installing the Taliban regime as its puppet in Afghanistan.
• Withdrawal of International Security Assistance Forces (ISAF) forces:  US administration has set 9/11 as the final date for its withdrawal from the territory of Afghanistan.  This has increased the incidents of violence in the country with many dormant groups becoming active for reclaiming their role in the leadership of Afghanistan. This has raised concerns of Afghanistan slipping back to chaos in the absence of any forthcoming international assistance.
• Overtone of Violence: Afghan peace process has assumed violent overtones due to the constant infighting among the tribes as well as the non-state actors. This makes it difficult to conduct dialogue within Afghan society. This has been complicated by the assertiveness of Taliban which has been emboldened by the withdrawal of US forces claiming it as their victory.
• Building a Counter-narrative: Taliban has picked its targets carefully in the form of moderate politicians, Afghan security forces and school going women in the hope of building a narrative in the country. It wants to bring back the conservative culture by selectively targeting the reform-oriented persons and establishments. This needs to be countered by the international community to ensure a peaceful, reform-oriented and just society in the country.

Way Forward

• Clarity in Expectations: There is a need to make it clear to Taliban and other non-state actors that what is expected out of them in order to let them continue having a presence in the political establishment. If the Taliban is unable to meet such concerns, then there is a need for commensurate rewards and punishments to make it amenable to the concerns of the international community.
• Reigning in Pakistan: As has been pointed out by many security experts, Pakistan has been the main actor in Afghanistan, especially backing the Taliban regime despite their emphasis on using terror as the instrument of projecting authority. Therefore, for any progress to be expected, Pakistan needs to be stopped from promoting violence and terror in the Afghan society.
• Taking China on Board: It is an open secret that Pakistan’s support to Taliban is based on financial backing from China. Otherwise, given the state of Pakistan’s economy, it would find it hard to finance the terrorist activities of non-state actors in Afghanistan. However, China needs to understand that a strong terrorist group on its border will ultimately affect its own provinces, including complicating the Uighur Muslims issue it faces in the Western Xinjiang region. Therefore, it is in its own interest to tide over Pakistan in not supporting Taliban regime in its terrorist overtures.
• Provision of Aid: It is important to understand that it would be easy for terror groups to pull youth into their ranks if they are not engaged in gainful employment and their aspirations are not fulfilled. The international community needs to stand in solidarity with the war-torn country and redouble its efforts towards rebuilding the ravaged country, following the Indian example.
• India’s engagement with stakeholders: Taliban has extended the olive branch towards India, highlighting their intention of getting over their dependence on Pakistan and extending the peace prospects in the region. There is a need to engage with all stakeholders to ensure that Afghan territory is not used for anti-India activities. In this context, India must start back-channel diplomacy to engage with the different stakeholders in Afghanistan, including Taliban.

Conclusion

• Afghanistan peace process is a rare opportunity for global solidarity and to demonstrate the world’s capability of raising an infant democracy from the ashes of a terror-based regime. However, it would require substantial financial commitments from the richer nations as per their capability.
• Also, there is a need to engage with all stakeholders amid an Afghan-led, Afghan-controlled and Afghan–owned peace process. India would do well to reciprocate the advances made by Taliban in including India in the peace process and contributing to the Afghan redevelopment efforts.

Practice Question

1. Why is India emphasizing on an Afghan-led, Afghan-controlled and Afghan-owned peace process? Do you think that the process would continue after the pull-out of the US defence forces from the country?
2. Discuss the modifications required in the National Disaster Management Act, in the wake of India’s inability to arrest the spread of second wave of COVID in the country.

UPSC Previous Year Questions

1. The proposed withdrawal of International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) from Afghanistan in 2014 is fraught with major security implications for the countries of the region. Examine in light of the fact that India is faced with a plethora of challenges and needs to safeguard its own strategic interests.             (GS2 – 2013)
2. “Increasing cross-border terrorist attacks in India and growing interference in the internal affairs of several member-states by Pakistan are not conducive for the future of SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation).” Explain with suitable examples.                                                                          (GS2 – 2016)

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