Perturbed over Pakistan, Qatar and Turkey’s outreach to Taliban, Saudi Arabia eyes closer ties with India

Saudi Arabia secretary of state Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud is predicted to go to India this weekend to debate the unfolding situation in Afghanistan and therefore the Taliban’s takeover of the country.

Prince Faisal, scheduled to land in India on 19 September, is predicted to carry meetings with External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar, National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and also Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

This meet comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi discussed the Afghanistan situation with UAE prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on 3 September over the phonephone , External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar hosted Dr Anwar Gargash, diplomatic advisor to UAE president, on 30 August and exchanged notes on the Kabul crisis.

Qatar, Turkey’s and Pakistan’s proximity to Taliban

India’s allies in West Asia, Saudi Arabia and therefore the UAE, are worried about the safety ramifications of a Taliban-led Afghanistan and therefore the ties shared by the Taliban and global terrorist networks.

The two nations also are said to possess been perturbed by the active role played by Qatar, Turkey and Pakistan in engaging with the Taliban regime.

Qatar has clothed to be a trusted mediator during this conflict.

Doha has become a key broker in Afghanistan following last month’s withdrawal folks forces, helping evacuate thousands of foreigners and Afghans, engaging the new Taliban rulers and supporting operations at Kabul airport.

Since the US pullout, Qatar Airways planes have made several trips to Kabul, flying in aid and Doha’s representatives and ferrying out foreign passport holders.

Meanwhile, Turkey, which has strong historical and ethnic ties in Afghanistan, has been on the bottom with non-combat troops because the only Muslim-majority member of the NATO alliance there.

According to analysts, it’s developed close intelligence ties with some Taliban-linked militia. Turkey is additionally an ally of neighbouring Pakistan, from whose religious seminaries the Taliban first emerged.

Last week, it had been reported that Turkish officials held talks with the Taliban lasting over three hours. a number of the discussions were about the longer term operation of the airport itself, which Turkish troops have guarded for 6 years.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has also stated: “Turkey is prepared to lend all types of support for Afghanistan’s unity but will follow a really cautious path.”

Professor Ahmet Kasim Han, an expert on Afghan relations at Istanbul’s Altinbas University, while chatting with BBC said that he believes handling the Taliban will provide President Erdogan with a chance .

He says Turkey may attempt to position itself as “guarantor, mediator, facilitator”, as a more trusted intermediary than Russia or China, who have kept their embassies open in Kabul.

“Turkey can serve that role,” he says.

According to experts, the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan has delivered a strategic victory to Pakistan, establishing a friendly government in Kabul for the primary time in nearly 20 years.

Pakistan has backed the Taliban from their earliest days. Islamabad was one among only three countries to recognise the Taliban government within the 1990s and therefore the last to interrupt formal ties with it in 2001.

It also provided safe havens to Taliban leaders and medical facilities for wounded fighters. This assistance helped sustain the Taliban, whilst they lost thousands of foot soldiers.

Pakistan last week sent supplies like vegetable oil and medicine to authorities in Kabul, while the country’s secretary of state called on the international community to supply assistance without conditions and to unfreeze Afghanistan’s assets.

Additionally, a Pakistan International Airlines plane from Islamabad flew to Kabul on Monday, making it the primary flight to land in Afghanistan from neighbouring Pakistan since the chaotic final withdrawal folks troops last month.

Saudi-Taliban ties

In the past, they worked together. But today, Saudi Arabia and therefore the Taliban are separated by political and cultural differences, also as some problematic history.

The last time the Taliban ran Afghanistan, between 1996 and 2001, Saudi Arabia was one among only three countries within the world to officially recognise the Islamist group’s government. Neighbouring Pakistan and therefore the United Arab Emirates (UAE) were the opposite two.

The situation changed dramatically for Saudi Arabia and therefore the UAE after Al-Qaeda, the Sunnite terrorist organization , administered suicide attacks within the US on 11 September, 2001, leading to the deaths of over 3,000 people.

This was because Saudi Arabia had a diplomatic relationship with the us since 1940 and therefore the American were the Kingdom’s strongest allies in trade and security.

Experts note that Saudi Arabia’s once-close ties won’t be revived any time soon.

The Saudi-US alliance remains important, and therefore the country’s ongoing cultural changes also play a neighborhood during this .

Saudi’s controversial prince , Mohammed bin Salman, is trying to modernise his country and therefore the idea of a more liberal and open Saudi Arabia doesn’t sit well with lending support to Islamist extremists in other countries.

Moreover, Kabir Taneja, a fellow at the India-based think factory Observer Research Foundation, wrote, “To maintain its image as an upcoming investment mecca, Riyadh will need to confirm it doesn’t once more become home to mass migration of fighters flying in and out of the Afghanistan … or become a hub of funding enabling extremist activities.”

Where does India come in?

India’s policymakers must look to Saudi Arabia to expand cooperation in anti-terrorism activities and expand dialogue on relations between the 2 , which can help protect the India’s interests associated with Afghanistan.

Saudi Arabia also believes that closer ties to India will help re-balance the geopolitics of the region, whereas India believes an honest relationship with Saudi will provides it an opportunity to counter a hostile China-Pakistan axis gaining strategic depth across the Khyber.qaa