Taliban’s Delhi Outreach Exposes Islamabad’s Strategic Collapse

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As Taliban Foreign Minister visits India, Islamabad’s bid to keep New Delhi out of Afghan affairs collapses.

By TRH Foreign Affairs Desk

New Delhi, October 10, 2025 — It was an image few would have predicted a decade ago: Afghanistan’s Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi walking the corridors of New Delhi, engaging with Indian officials, scholars, and ministers. Even more striking was the timing — just as Pakistan launched airstrikes on Afghan territory, targeting elements of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

The juxtaposition — of diplomacy in Delhi and bombs over Kabul — has thrown into sharp relief Pakistan’s eroding influence over the very regime it helped midwife into power.

Former Pakistani ambassador to the US, Hussain Haqqani, put it bluntly on X: “Pakistan had supported the Mujahideen against the Russia-backed government and the Taliban against the US-backed governments in order to prevent Afghanistan and India from uniting. Seeing the pictures of the Taliban’s Afghan Foreign Minister in Delhi, one wonders what was lost and what was gained.”

That rhetorical question captures the strategic irony haunting Islamabad today.

Pakistan’s Grip Loosens, India Steps In

Pakistan’s establishment long viewed Afghanistan as its “strategic depth” — a buffer state against India. But the Taliban’s diplomatic outreach to New Delhi marks a slow-motion rupture in that doctrine.

As Brahma Chellaney noted on X, “Pakistan’s bombing of targets in Afghanistan — while the Taliban foreign minister was in India — exposes Islamabad’s desperation to reassert control over a regime slipping from its grip. The show of force, meant to coerce the Taliban, will likely do the opposite: drive Kabul closer to New Delhi.”

The irony is thick. The Taliban, once derided as Pakistan’s proxy, is now asserting its independence by broadening diplomatic and economic ties, with India emerging as a prime beneficiary.

A Visit Rich in Symbolism

Muttaqi’s trip to India — his first official visit — carried both symbolism and substance. During his engagements, including a public conversation hosted by Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF), he emphasized Afghanistan’s historical and cultural ties with India.

His reference to Rabindranath Tagore’s “Kabuliwala” reportedly struck an emotional chord with the audience — a reminder of how deep the people-to-people connection runs, beyond geopolitics.

When asked about visiting Deoband and Pakistan’s accusations that Afghanistan “exports terrorism,” Muttaqi replied firmly: “Those who claim that Afghanistan exports terror should provide some proof. I don’t think anyone faces any danger from Afghanistan. We have a strong leadership in Kabul, and no one can use our land against anyone.”

India’s Calculated Engagement

India, for its part, is moving cautiously but decisively. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, after meeting Muttaqi, reaffirmed India’s “commitment to Afghanistan’s sovereignty and independence” and announced that India would upgrade its technical mission in Kabul to a full embassy.

In a tangible gesture, Jaishankar handed over five ambulances as part of a larger Indian humanitarian aid package — a continuation of New Delhi’s soft-power approach in Afghanistan.

Muttaqi, meanwhile, confirmed reciprocal plans: “India will upgrade its technical mission to an embassy, and we will also send our diplomats here. Our diplomatic engagement is moving forward positively.”

Geopolitics in Transition

For Islamabad, this is nothing short of a diplomatic nightmare.
Tilak Devasher, former member of India’s National Security Advisory Board, told StratNews Global: “The strikes in Kabul were a dramatic escalation whose timing was deliberate. Islamabad appeared rattled by Muttaqi’s warm reception in India and by New Delhi’s decision to upgrade its mission in Kabul.”

What began as a Pakistani project to shape Afghanistan’s future has turned into an open contest for influence — one that Islamabad is now visibly losing.

The Regional Reversal

For decades, Pakistan’s foreign policy toward Afghanistan revolved around keeping India out. But the more Islamabad tries to assert dominance through military coercion, the more it risks alienating Kabul.

As Chellaney observed, “The Taliban, no longer content to be Pakistan’s proxy, are actively broadening their diplomatic and economic ties — and India is the prime beneficiary of Islamabad’s missteps.”

In short, what Pakistan once saw as its strategic depth may soon become its strategic headache.

And as Taliban ministers drink tea in Delhi’s diplomatic enclaves, it is clear: the center of gravity in South Asia’s Afghan diplomacy has quietly shifted — from Rawalpindi to Raisina Hill.

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