India, A Helper or Opportunist?
India and Afghanistan have had a strong relation for hundreds of years. India has been investing in Afghanistan’s social and economic development and is encouraging investors to do so too. India is investing in an unstable country like Afghanistan because of its economic potential and it also does not want another Taliban controlled state like the Islamic State of Afghanistan, which would undermine its sensitive relations with Pakistan.
India’s foreign policy is derived from its relationship with Pakistan. Instability in Afghanistan leads the radical Islamic groups to become more powerful, which results in them, attacking Pakistan and India. This creates tensions between India and Pakistan because they blame each other for these attacks. Afghanistan and India have repeatedly accused Pakistan for harboring and funding these terrorist organizations. India wants to create a safe Afghanistan in order for it to protect its public without western interference. United States, an ally of Pakistan, sees India suspiciously because it believes that by helping Afghanistan, India’s agenda is to undermine Pakistan’s standing in the region. India is also interested in Afghanistan for its economic potential. India wants to create trade link, a land bridge, with Afghanistan through Pakistan, which will create a ‘Silk Road’ and bring back economic prosperity to Afghanistan, which will be highly profitable for India. Indian government owned steel companies such as Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), one of world’s largest steel producers, is constructing a mine to extract ores, which are worth upwards of $3.3 trillion. This a $2.2 billion project and to put it into perspective, Afghanistan’s GDP is $20.3 billion, which makes this a massive investment on India’s part.
Under the Gujral policy, India started helping Afghanistan without expecting anything in return. India is investing in the development of the country because it wants to make itself the dominant and established country in the region. India has crossed paths with the U.S. on topics such as nuclear power acquisition and doesn’t like the U.S. meddling the region's issues. By massive investments in the country, India hopes to have Kabul swing in New Delhi’s direction rather than Islamabad’s, which is virtually controlled by the U.S. As, a developing country making a position for itself on the world map, India is cautious of the region it is located in. Thus, to create a more stable region, India views Afghanistan as weak and wants it to become stronger. Indian military is training Afghanistan troops and developing infrastructure for the country such as the new parliament house and the Salma Dam power project for the government to
