Over the past three months, a series of high-level Taliban visits to India has signalled a dramatic shift in South Asia’s geopolitical map. First came Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi. Then came Acting Commerce Minister Nooruddin Azizi. Both arrived with the same message: Afghanistan wants more trade with India—and less reliance on Pakistan.

On November 22, Azizi landed in New Delhi for a five-day visit. And what he said across multiple meetings has been revealing. In a nutshell, Kabul’s message was this: Pakistan’s trade routes are unreliable, Kabul wants more trade and more investment from India, and it is willing to offer incentives and security to Indian investors to make that happen.

In an interview with News18, Azizi said: “We request the government of India to restore the political, trade and cultural relationship that once existed between our two countries."

His agenda was clear: expand trade with India, scale up the use of Iran’s Chabahar Port, set up dry ports in Nimroz, activate cargo flights between Delhi, Amritsar and Kabul, and bring in Indian investments. Indian officials confirmed that air freight corridors are being activated and said cargo flights will begin “very soon".

Kabul’s Offer To India

What Azizi brought to the table is especially significant. Afghanistan has offered Indian investors five-year tax breaks, free land allocations, and fast-tracked bureaucratic approvals across mining, pharmaceuticals, textiles, agriculture, energy........

© News18