NEW DELHI: Afghanistan, Covid and connectivity dominated the discussions among central Asian foreign ministers and India on Sunday. The third central Asia dialogue will be followed by the residents of all five countries coming as chief guests for India’s Republic Day celebrations next month, in a sign that India is deeply invested in closer ties in this part of the world, as “the Afghanistan and China challenge” necessitate such an engagement, feel government sources.
Interestingly, most of the ministers skipped the OIC meeting being organised by Pakistan in Islamabad the past weekend. The Uzbek foreign minister, however, registered his presence there before coming to New Delhi.
Foreign minister S Jaishankar held a bilateral meeting with his Tajik counterpart on Saturday and with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan counterparts on Sunday. The foreign ministers will call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday before returning. Calling for a representative and inclusive government in Afghanistan, the joint statement said, they supported “a peaceful, secure and stable Afghanistan while emphasising the respect for sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity and non-interference in its internal affairs…”
The central Asian nations signed on to a formulation that is normally used by India against Chinese BRI. They agreed that “connectivity initiatives should be based on the principles of transparency, broad participation, local priorities, financial sustainability and respect for the sovereignty and the territorial integrity of all the countries.”
India proposed using the Chahbahar port for transit and making it part of the INSTC (International North-South Transport Corridor), which was accepted. The Shahid Beheshti terminal at Chahbahar, built by India, is seen as a viable entrepot to access central Asia via Iran, bypassing Pakistan. Turkmenistan is pushing for a TAPI pipeline to Pakistan and India, though its fate is currently uncertain. Jaishankar said, “The Covid pandemic has resulted in an enormous setback to global health and economy…highlights the inadequacy of the existing multilateral structures to meet new threats. We need diversified supply chains and more regional solutions.” Assuring that India would remain a “steadfast partner”, Jaishankar said, “Our ties must focus around 4Cs: Commerce, Capacity enhancement, Connectivity and Contacts.”