The Voice News : Though no country formally recognises the Taliban regime, Afghanistan’s acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi has been remarkably busy — holding talks with top diplomats from India, Pakistan, Iran, and China in just a few weeks. This diplomatic blitz suggests that regional players increasingly view the Taliban as a necessary actor in their strategic calculus, even without formal recognition.
Who Has Engaged the Taliban Recently?
A flurry of high-level meetings has taken place:
April 19: Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar visited Kabul to discuss refugee repatriation and trade.
May 6: Dar and Muttaqi spoke again ahead of the India-Pakistan conflict over the Pahalgam attack.
May 15: India’s S. Jaishankar called Muttaqi to thank the Taliban for condemning the Kashmir attack.
May 17: Muttaqi met Iranian President Massoud Pazeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Tehran.
May 21: He joined trilateral talks with China and Pakistan in Beijing focused on trade and security.Suhail Shaheen, the Taliban’s political office head in Doha, described the Taliban as the “reality of today’s Afghanistan,” arguing that engagement — not isolation — is the rational path forward.
Why Is India Reaching Out?
India’s relationship with the Taliban has shifted dramatically. Once a staunch opponent during the Taliban’s first rule (1996–2001), India closed its Kabul embassy and backed the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance. However, after the group returned to power in 2021, New Delhi quietly began diplomatic engagement.
In 2022, India reopened its Kabul embassy with a technical team. By early 2025, Indian and Taliban officials held their highest-level meeting yet in Dubai. Analysts say India’s change in approach reflects a desire not to repeat its past mistake of ceding influence in Afghanistan to Pakistan.
Kabir Taneja of the Observer Research Foundation called the new approach “realistic,” noting deep-rooted regional and ideological ties, including the Taliban’s links to India-based institutions like the Darul Uloom Deoband seminary.
What About Pakistan?
Pakistan was once the Taliban’s strongest supporter, but ties have since soured. Islamabad accuses the Taliban of sheltering the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which has launched deadly attacks within Pakistan. The Taliban deny the allegations.
Analyst Rabia Akhtar said recent talks between Islamabad and Kabul are more tactical than transformative, driven largely by Pakistan’s concerns about Afghanistan’s neutrality during the recent India-Pakistan flare-up and growing border insecurity.
The refugee issue also looms large. Pakistan’s decision to expel Afghan refugees has angered Kabul, which views the move as punitive. Still, both sides appear to recognize the need for engagement amid growing regional tensions.
What Does Iran Want?
Iran also opposed the Taliban during their first rule, nearly going to war after Taliban fighters killed Iranian diplomats in 1998. However, Tehran now sees the Taliban as a useful partner on issues like border security, countering ISIS-K, trade, and water rights.
Analyst Ibraheem Bahiss said Iran’s outreach is pragmatic, not ideological. Iran is one of Afghanistan’s top trading partners and needs cooperation on border management and the Helmand River water dispute. In May 2023, this issue sparked deadly clashes.
While formal recognition remains off the table, Iran sees Taliban engagement as essential to managing security threats and regional interests.
Bottom Line:
Despite being diplomatically isolated on paper, the Taliban are increasingly central to regional diplomacy. India, Pakistan, and Iran — each with fraught histories with the group — are setting aside past grievances to secure their interests in a post-American Afghanista