India backed Afghanistan's sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity at the Moscow Format consultations. The meeting also pushed humanitarian aid, deeper Kabul engagement and regional cooperation.

DND Report: The statement by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation S.V. Lavrov at the Eighth Meeting of the Moscow Format Consultations on Afghanistan, Moscow, 5 October 2026, was an excellent achievement for the Afghan Taliban regime as he said that the national government that came to power, headed by the Taliban Movement, brought the country’s territory under control and, it must be acknowledged, is governing it quite successfully. Possibly, His Excellency Lavrov forgot that Afghan Taliban did not come through any election or Jirga decision and only through a contract with the United States and through guns, not votes. Neither is this regime all-inclusive nor approved by the people of Afghanistan. The so-called Interim Government of Afghan Taliban is still interim even after five years have passed, as they did not hold any election or Jirga to get the approval of the public, nor included representatives of other ethnic groups and women in the government. Moreover, H.E. Lavrov added that…

By Agha Iqrar Haroon Tightening the grip on northern Afghanistan, Taliban have opened a 121-kilometer gravel road through the isolated Wakhan Corridor in Badakhshan province that now connects Afghan road network with China Zero Point. Completed in two years and funded domestically with 365 million Afghanis, the route includes four bridges, 66 culverts, and retaining walls, aiming to extend the ring road network for better regional trade links to China, Iran, and Central Asia. The road is strategically important not for Afghanistan only but for Turkmenistan, Iran and Uzbekistan as well for a direct link through Afghanistan to China. The road is much easier to drive than the zigzag KKH link of China to Pakistan. Babusar Pass link to KKH has already been rejected by long-vehicle drivers due to its extreme turns and steepness, while Havalian to Chilas Zero Point KKH is still under heavy remodelling and redesigning due to Dasu Dam construction. Chilas, being a turbulent point for security reasons, is still on the…

DND Special Report: The international conference titled “Afghan Predicament and the Trajectory to Peace,” held in Islamabad on September 29–30, concluded with a joint statement observing that the Afghan Taliban had failed to act as a responsible regional actor, were spreading terrorism and violence in the region, and had not fulfilled their promises regarding the establishment of an inclusive government and a country that would not spread terrorism to neighboring countries. Participants of conference urged linking international engagement and aid to benchmarks on political inclusion, citizens’ rights, and counter terrorism, while stressing that Taliban internal cohesion does not equate to national stability or legitimacy. The conference also documented a perceivable change in Pakistan’s Afghan policy, which Pakistan had been following for the last 50 years as Islamabad’s policy had been Pashtun-centric since the Afghan Soviet War, thereby not inviting other ethnic groups such as Tajiks, Hazaras, Uzbeks and Turkmens…