More Cooperation, More Terror? Enhanced Kabul-New Delhi Military Ties, Increasing Taliban Attacks, and the Role of Pakistan

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Abstract

Afghanistan is once again facing a deteriorating security situation. In Helmand, the country’s largest province, the Taliban were able to make significant inroads and seriously challenge Afghan security forces. To make the situation even worse, the military successes of the Jihadist insurgent groups come at a time when the national government suffers from internal conflicts, deepening the existing rift between Afghanistan’s leading political figures, President Abdullah Abdullah and the Chief Executive of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Ashraf Ghani. Considering the resurgence of the Jihadist insurgents and the fragile domestic political structure, New Delhi offered Kabul “full support for boosting Afghanistan’s defence capabilities to preserve its unity and territorial integrity”.