Editorial: Swaraj’s visit: Afghanistan-India defense ties?

With the country experiencing a severe political deadlock, international forces withdrawing, and foreign aid declining, it’s India that could potentially fill the void. India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj is visiting Afghanistan on Wednesday (today) in such a particular juncture as this change-loving nation is impatiently waiting for the presidential election outcome. Afghanistan has held its presidential elections just a few weeks before India’s presidential poll, but Indians have a new government and its External Affairs Minister, Swaraj is making her first visit to hold talks with President Hamid Karzai on a number of crucial bilateral and regional issues.
Cementing defense and security assistance from India will top the agenda. However, we may learn from India too many things in too many spheres. India, home to over a billion population, with different religions, and a myriad of languages and dialects, has upheld its national unity, while we are still plagued by internal bickering. It’s such a travesty. Individually some of us will be too much affluent and roaming in bullet proof vehicles with one foot here and another one on American soil and flying to Dubai on one week while landing in Switzerland on another week, but it doesn’t mean they are civilized and part of a modern world. No, they shouldn’t nurture this delusion. Until their entire nation and this country is taken out of the jaws of challenges, the thousands of widows and orphans are given riddance from the vicious circle of life, roads across the country are asphalted and our very own national economy made independent, they cannot be called respectful and civilized. Civilization and respect of a nation lies in collective successes not in individual bank balancing piling up.
Coming back to the main point of security assistance, India could play a vital role in this regard as it has been playing a substantial one already. Moreover, back in April 2011, Nato announced the donation of weapon, vehicles and airplane worth over $10 billion to Afghan National Security Forces by 2014 end. The spokesman for NATO at that time also said some 70,000 automobiles, including armored and technical vehicles, would be purchased for ANSF, however, little headway has been made in this regard. The Russian-made helicopters would be purchased for Afghan forces and the money will be paid by India. Why this security assistance couldn’t yield any result is because of the bilateral security agreement (BSA) with the United States. Though NATO summit was held in Wales, England just a few days back on Afghanistan, where it was agreed that the international community will continue its security and financial aid to Kabul, but what NATO Secretary General Andres Fogh Rasmussen said is an eye opener for us all. He said that in the absence of the BSA and no clear roadmap of political future, Nato will not provide any assistance to Afghanistan as the country has been struck by a presidential election deadlock. NATO leaders also vowed to support Ukraine, which clearly means now its Ukraine that will become of more interests to NATO than Afghanistan.
As things are rapidly changing in Afghanistan, a conceivable scenario over the next few years may involve enhancement of Kabul-New Delhi ties in terms of security and training. To make this happen, India and Pakistan need to revive their relations. Besides, security relations between India and Iran have been on the hike and they have a shared belief that Pakistan still holds a larger sway over Afghanistan by holding the threads of Taliban in its hands so it was not in the strategic interests of either state and was a threat to the regional stability of the entire region. With the change in Indian government and becoming of Narendra Modi, the people of Afghanistan have been longing for bold and daring changes in India’s Afghan policy, which has so far been treading very much careful. Now is the time to take some bold steps in terms of security and defense relations.

Afghanistantimes

Tags: Editorial, Swaraj’s, visit

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