Timing is also a diplomatic tool and important missive.
New Delhi hosted the India-Central Asia dialogue discussing at length various pros and cons of situation in Afghanistan and other issues of regional importance on Dec 19.
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| Jaishankar and 5 FM of Central Asia |
Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, share a border with Afghanistan. Other nations attended the meet were, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyz Republic.
"The 3rd meeting of the India-Central Asia Dialogue was held in New Delhi on 19 December 2021 under the chairmanship of the External Affairs Minister of India. Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Republic of Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Republic of Uzbekistan took part in the meeting," the Joint Statement said.
In Islamabad, the tone was of a clear frustration and helplessness. By flagging humanitarian crisis challenge, the beleaguered Pak Prime Minister Imran Khan made a strong pitch for the newly installed
Taliban regime in Kabul.
"If the world doesn't act, this will be the biggest man-made crisis which is unfolding in front of us," he said, sounding rather helpless.
In New Delhi meet, the Foreign Ministers were in a better situation clearly and were engaged in a business-like talks.
They discussed the "current situation" in Afghanistan and its impact on the region, the Joint Statement said.
The Ministers reiterated strong support for a peaceful, secure and stable Afghanistan while emphasizing the respect for sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity and non-interference in its internal affairs. They also discussed the current humanitarian situation and decided to continue to provide immediate humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people.
"The Ministers reaffirmed the importance of UNSC Resolution 2593 (2021) which unequivocally demands that Afghan territory not be used for sheltering, training, planning or financing terrorist acts and called for concerted action against all terrorist groups. The Ministers also agreed to continue close consultations on the situation in Afghanistan."
They also dwelt on issues which have always left Pakistan irked.
"They stressed that perpetrators, organizers, financiers and sponsors of terrorist acts must be held accountable and brought to justice in accordance with principle of "extradite or prosecute”. In this context, they called for early adoption of the UN Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism".
They called on the international community to strengthen UN-led global counter-terrorism cooperation and fully implement the relevant UNSC resolutions, Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy and FATF standards - the Joint Statement said.
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| OIC: Islamabad |
Envoys from 57 Islamic nations as well as observer delegations participated at OIC Summit.
Imran Khan said no other country had suffered as much as Afghanistan, adding that even before the Taliban seized control, half of the population was below the poverty line.
He said that 75 per cent of the country's budget was also supported by foreign aid.
He noted that any country, in a situation similar to that of Afghanistan, would collapse.
The OIC also had a "religious duty" to help the Afghans, he played the ultimate Muslim card.
He could not have been more specific about his frustration with Americans and underlined that Washington must "delink" the Taliban government from the 40 million Afghan citizens.
In fact, Imran's speech does not make reference to the challenges faced by Taliban from ISIS-K.
It goes without saying, Afghanistan's history is replete with several wars.
Experts say, with a weak economy, the 'inexperienced' Taliban is finding things more difficult to handle vis-a-vis the ISIS-K threat.
Lately, to cope with ISIS-K, the Taliban have deployed nearly 1,300 fighters to the eastern Afghan province of Nangahar, the supposed operational hub of ISIS-K.
Moreover, the ISIS-K’s numbers and strengths are accelerating posing a grave security threat to the country.
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| Taliban leaders in China: Summer of 2021 |
Imran said that Pakistan was currently housing over three million refugees, adding that country was also providing shelter to more than 200,000 refugees who had overstayed their visas.
"The situation in Afghanistan means they can't go back. We are already suffering from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. We are not in a position to deal with a influx of refugees."
For its part, India is keeping a close watch.
“We all also share deep-rooted historical and civilizational ties with Afghanistan. Our concerns and objectives in that country are similar: a truly inclusive and representative government, the fight against terrorism and drug trafficking, ensuring unhindered humanitarian assistance and preserving the rights of women, children and the minorities. We must find ways of helping the people of Afghanistan,” Dr S Jaishankar told the visiting ministers.
ends
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