India, Afghanistan to Boost Trade Ties Amid Pak Tensions

New Delhi: External affairs minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar on Thursday met Afghan industry and commerce minister Alhaj Nooruddin Azizi in the capital, where the two leaders discussed ways to strengthen trade, connectivity and people-to-people ties. Jaishankar also reiterated India’s support for the development and welfare of the Afghan people.

A high-level Afghan delegation led by minister Azizi began a five-day official visit to India on Wednesday, aimed at boosting bilateral trade and investment. The Afghan minister also met Afghan traders based in India to discuss market access and expansion opportunities. The visit comes against the backdrop of escalating Afghanistan-Pakistan tensions, including border closures that have disrupted Afghan exports and prompted Kabul to diversify its trade partnerships with India.

Officials noted that Afghanistan is seeking Indian investment in its mining and hydroelectric sectors and is exploring connectivity options that bypass Pakistan. In this context, the Iranian port of Chabahar, which offers India and Afghanistan a direct sea-land link, avoiding Pakistani territory, remains crucial.

India’s key exports to Afghanistan include pharmaceuticals, textiles, machinery, and food products such as sugar, tea and rice. Afghan exports to India are mainly agricultural goods and minerals. New Delhi recently upgraded its three-year-old “technical mission” in Kabul to a full-fledged embassy with immediate effect.

Earlier this month, Jaishankar and Afghan foreign minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi, a senior Taliban leader, discussed the regional situation by phone, days after deadly border clashes between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Muttaqi had also visited New Delhi last month, even as India appears to be gradually moving toward fuller diplomatic engagement with the Taliban regime.

Relations between Islamabad and the Afghan Taliban have sharply deteriorated in recent years, particularly after attacks on Pakistani security forces by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Criticising Pakistan and backing Afghanistan in the ongoing tensions, New Delhi stated last month, “Pakistan is infuriated with Afghanistan exercising sovereignty over its own territories… Pakistan seems to think it has the right to practice cross-border terrorism with impunity. Its neighbours find it unacceptable.” India reaffirmed its commitment to Afghanistan’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence, and accused Pakistan of “hosting terrorists” and blaming its neighbours for its internal failures.

The Taliban returned to power after the US military withdrawal in August 2021, which led to the collapse of president Ashraf Ghani’s government. India evacuated all its diplomats and project staff at that time but re-established its presence by setting up a “technical mission” at the Kabul embassy in June 2022 as ties with the Taliban began improving.