NSA talks to send 'loud message' to Taliban, unspoken consensus on Pakistan role: Sources

The NSA-level Delhi Regional Security Dialogue on Afghanistan will see the participation of eight countries that will hold talks to bring a consensus on Afghanistan. Sources on the NSA-level Delhi dialogue told ANI that discussions on terrorism in Afghanistan and across the border; radicalisation and extremism, will be held during the meeting. Central Asian countries have also expressed their concern over drug production, trafficking and the threat emanating from military weapons left behind in Afghanistan, which will also be on the agenda.

With the attendance of Russia, Iran, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, this is the highest participation in this format of talks. The aim of the talks is to send a 'loud and clear' message to Kabul and assert that whosoever rules Afghanistan needs to represent the will of the people.

"None of the eight countries (including India) recognize or legitimize Taliban government. India also doesn't recognize it, which is why it has not invited Afghanistan to the dialogue," the sources said.

Eight nations who are stakeholders in the region will take part in NSA level talks, with the exclusion of Pakistan and China, on November 10. The high participation in the dialogue is proof of India's acceptance as key to the Afghan process. It is expected that the countries will issue a joint statement after the NSA-level talks.

Schedule for the delegates 

A Plenary will be held on Wednesday morning following which all visiting NSAs will call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday afternoon and will hold bilateral talks with India's NSA Ajit Doval who will chair the high-level participation. A formal dinner will also be hosted by NSA Doval on Wednesday evening. 

It is also expected that the Kazakhstan delegation will travel to Golden Temple, Amritsar, the Uzbekistan delegation to Agra and the Tajikistan delegation will visit some historical sites in Delhi on the sidelines of the meet. Translation arrangements have been made in Russian and Persian for the meetings.

Pakistan's role to be discussed: Sources

Furthermore, Republic TV has learnt that the 'unspoken consensus' is that Pakistan is the source of problems in Afghanistan. There is a consensus on the 'credibility gap' in Pakistan's words and actions. Its decision to skip the NSA-level meeting organised by India had established its position on the Taliban takeover. The country had been invited for the high-level meeting in spite of reports establishing its open collusion with the Taliban which caused significant damage to resistance forces in Panjshir. In the aftermath of the fall, Imran Khan's government had made repeated appeals to the international community to recognise the legitimacy of the Taliban-led government. 

Meanwhile, China has said that it is unable to attend the meeting due to a scheduling issue. Sources on NSA level dialogue on Afghanistan have told ANI that China is open for dialogue with India on Afghanistan 'multilaterally and bilaterally'. 

(With Agency Inputs)