India’s Central Asian Outreach

Context: Dramatic developments in Afghanistan have thrown up renewed challenges for India’s regional and bilateral ties with Central Asia and the Caucasus, prompting India to recalibrate its rules of engagement with the region.

Challenges before India’s Central Asian policy

• Security challenges: Taliban re-establishing its supremacy over Afghanistan has exposed weaknesses of coalitions such as SCO, created in response to threats of terrorism that sprang from Afghanistan.
  • Increasing trust-deficit and divergence within the forum: SCO has been used by most member countries for their own regional geostrategic and security interests.
• India’s strategic limitations: As India’s efforts for closer ties were stonewalled by Pakistan’s lack of willingness to allow India passage through its territory. 
• China took advantage of the situation and unveiled the much-hyped BRI in Kazakhstan. 
  • Growing geostrategic and security concerns regarding BRI’s China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and its violation of India’s sovereignty forced New Delhi to fix its lethargic strategy.
  • China’s assertive approach led to rising social discontent on the ill-treatment of their ethnic brethren in neighbouring Xinjiang.

Way forward: Rising anti-Chinese sentiments within the region and security threats from the Taliban allow New Delhi and Central Asia to reimagine their engagement. India cannot afford to lose any time in recalibrating its regional engagements.