Kabul’s flirt with New Delhi is a classic case of geopolitical logic.
Mohan-C-Raja-foreign-policy-columnistC. Raja Mohan
C. Raja Mohan,
A columnist at Foreign Policy and a former member of India’s National Security Advisory Board.Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi arrives at Afghanistan's embassy in New Delhi for a press conference on Oct. 12.Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi arrives at Afghanistan's embassy in New Delhi for a press conference on Oct. 12. Elke Scholiers/Getty Images
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If geography is destiny, then nowhere is this equation more relentless than at the subcontinent’s northwestern frontier. Since the partition of British India in 1947, two patterns have held steady: hostility between Afghanistan and Pakistan, and warmth between Afghanistan and India. No matter who rules in Kabul—monarchists, communists, or various iterations of Islamists—the pattern endures. Pakistan helped create and nurture the Taliban to end these patterns once and for all; today, the Taliban are battling Pakistan and looking to India for balance.
Renewed clashes along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border in October fit perfectly within this historical rhythm. The irony is unmistakable: The same Pakistan that helped install the Taliban in power finds itself locked in an escalating conflict with them—and negotiating only through third parties.
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