“Pakistan on edge as India strengthens Afghan relations”, First Post, October 30, 2025
“Following the visit of Afghanistan foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi to Delhi, India upgraded its technical mission in Kabul to an embassy. India had closed its embassy in Kabul in 2021, when the Taliban took control of the country, expecting it to be a Pakistan-dominated state. It re-established a technical mission in June 2022 to monitor its aid supplies once it became evident that Kabul would not be controlled by Islamabad.
Currently, tensions are high between the two states along the Durand Line. The MEA statement on the re-establishment of the embassy read: “This decision (to upgrade the technical mission to an embassy) underscores India’s resolve to deepen its bilateral engagement with the Afghan side in all spheres of mutual interest.”
The recent visit to India by Muttaqi was a game changer. While in India, Muttaqi signed a joint statement acknowledging that India and Afghanistan are neighbours, implying that POK and Gilgit-Baltistan are part of India. He also criticised Pakistan’s handling of the TLP (Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan) protests. Pakistan, as expected, condemned both the statement and his remarks but was clearly unsettled by the growing India-Afghanistan bonhomie…….”
Read full article at firstpost.com
