Pak-Afghan Border clashes: Amir Khan Muttaqi does not know history who won wars in Afghanistan

DND Report: Afghan Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, while in New Delhi, said that the Afghan Taliban stand with India.

His comments appeared in Indian media following his meeting with Indian Minister of External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on October 10, 2025. No information was released about Muttaqi’s meeting with Indian NSA Ajit Doval.

Indian media reports suggest that over 15,000 Indian engineers, doctors, teachers, intelligence officers, and military personnel will be permanently stationed in Afghanistan under an understanding between India and Afghanistan for the execution of various projects. Indian security forces will ensure the protection of Indian nationals in Afghanistan in collaboration with Afghan security forces. Indirectly confirming the news about the posting of over 15,000 Indians in Afghanistan, Minister of External Affairs Jaishankar stated that several Indian projects in Afghanistan have been renewed and that more developmental projects are in the pipeline.

“We can discuss the maintenance and repair of completed projects as well as steps to finish others to which we have already committed. Beyond that, other development priorities of Afghanistan can be discussed by our teams,” read an official statement released by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs.

According to available information, India will run six new healthcare projects, rebuild houses affected by the Kunar and Nangarhar earthquakes, support Afghan cricket, address Afghanistan’s food security, collaborate on water resources, and operate educational programmes in Afghanistan.

“These developments are not unexpected for Pakistan and, in fact, reaffirm Pakistan’s long-held position that India and Afghanistan have been collaborating against Pakistan for years“

Indian media said that “the Indian presence in Afghanistan will now exceed levels seen during the Hamid Karzai and Ashraf Ghani eras”. It is pertinent to mention that New Delhi has long been using Afghan soil for cross-border terrorism against Pakistan. Now, New Delhi will have greater access to Kabul, as both countries have officially agreed upon to enhance security arrangements and intelligence training cooperation. Muttaqi’s visit marks a potential shift in India’s Afghanistan policy ‘from covert to overt’ because India had been engaged with Afghan Taliban even before the they took power. However, both India and the Afghan Taliban were cautious about displaying their deep-rooted strategic relationship until January 2025, when the Biden administration brokered their official strategic partnership.

“The visit may be considered a historic diplomatic development in South Asia and a direct outcome of the India–Afghanistan strategic partnership brokered by the Biden administration just before handing over the Oval Office to President Trump”, commented an Indian analyst during special transmission over Muttaqi’s visit to India.

It is pertinent to mention that the U.S. administration under Biden had been providing funds and other financial support to the Taliban interim government, but President Trump halted financial assistance after taking office.

“Over 80 percent of the so-called engineers, doctors, and teachers would, in fact, be intelligence operatives from India’s RAW agency. Pakistan must now abandon its previous “need-based” dealings with Afghanistan and adopt a firm, security-first approach toward Kabul”

Pakistan has repeatedly raised alarms that the Afghan Taliban host, fund, and support terror networks such as the TTP (officially referred to by Pakistan as Fitna-e-Khawarij) to attack Pakistan’s forces with New Delhi’s financial support. Kabul, however, consistently rejects Pakistan’s concerns and denies hosting terrorists targeting Pakistan. Muttaqi received full protocol as a visiting foreign minister in New Delhi; similar to that accorded to ministers from recognized governments although India has yet to officially recognize the Afghan Taliban interim government. His meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not yet been confirmed but remains likely, though Modi may be occupied due to the concurrent visit of UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who is in New Delhi with the largest-ever British trade delegation, security officials, and cabinet members. In May 2025, Jaishankar called Muttaqi for a detailed discussion after Muttaqi condemned the April 22 Pahalgam attack, which, according to available information, was actually a false flag operation orchestrated by India against Pakistan. During and after the May 2025 Pakistan–India four-day war, Afghanistan and Israel were the only two countries that openly supported India’s stance. Muttaqi’s earlier planned visit to New Delhi was cancelled due to visa waiver issues, although he had intended to travel to India soon after the Pak–India war ended. Muttaqi’s presence in New Delhi confirms that India is distancing itself from its old Afghan allies, particularly the Northern Alliance.

When asked to comment, a former diplomat in Islamabad stated that these developments are not unexpected for Pakistan and, in fact, reaffirm Pakistan’s long-held position that India and Afghanistan have been collaborating against Pakistan for years. “The only difference now,” he said, “is that this collaboration will become overt rather than covert.” He added that this situation may also help the Pakistani government counter the cliché that “Afghans are our brothers,” and inform the public that Afghanistan has historically acted as an adversary to Pakistan despite Pakistan’s consistent support.

A former intelligence officer who previously handled the Pak–Afghan desk remarked that nothing about these developments surprised him. He predicted that India would soon start transferring military-grade weapons disguised as machinery and medical equipment and that over 80 percent of the so-called engineers, doctors, and teachers would, in fact, be intelligence operatives from India’s RAW agency. He concluded that Pakistan must now abandon its previous “need-based” dealings with Afghanistan and adopt a firm, security-first approach toward Kabul.