Afghanistan Peace Campaign
Pakistan’s decades-long strategy of supporting the Taliban to reduce India’s influence in Afghanistan has failed to deliver the expected results, according to an Indian analyst, who says the Taliban’s expanding engagement with New Delhi has exposed the limits of Islamabad’s influence.
Raghav Sharma, director of the Centre for Afghanistan Studies at O.P. Jindal Global University in India, said in an interview that Pakistan had spent roughly three decades supporting the Taliban in the hope of strengthening its position in Afghanistan. Instead, relations between the former allies have deteriorated, while the Taliban has pursued contacts with other regional powers, including India.
He compared Pakistan’s current difficulties with its experience in the 1990s, when Islamabad supported Afghan mujahideen groups in the expectation that allied forces would give it decisive influence over Afghanistan’s political direction.
Sharma said the current tensions between Pakistan and the Taliban were genuine rather than a political performance. He argued that the Taliban had sought to demonstrate its independence from Pakistan’s military establishment and challenge perceptions that its decisions were controlled by Islamabad.
Security dispute strains Pakistan-Taliban ties
The dispute over the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an armed group that carries out attacks in Pakistan, remains a major source of tension. Islamabad has repeatedly accused the Afghan Taliban of allowing the TTP to operate from Afghanistan territory and has demanded action against the group. The Taliban authorities deny providing sanctuary to militants and have rejected Pakistan’s accusations.
Sharma said the Taliban was unwilling to meet Pakistan’s demands to sever its ties with the TTP, leaving a major obstacle to improving relations. The dispute, he argued, also illustrates the limits of Pakistan’s ability to influence the Taliban leadership.
The analyst raised the possibility that Pakistan could be supporting armed opponents of the Taliban in Afghanistan, including groups operating in Badakhshan and Nuristan. However, he did not provide evidence for the allegation in the interview. He also said he saw no clear indication that Pakistan had decided to seek the Taliban’s overthrow.
India pursues a pragmatic approach
Sharma described India’s engagement with the Taliban as a pragmatic policy driven by national interests. He said New Delhi recognised that the Taliban remains Afghanistan’s dominant political and military force and that meaningful engagement with the country requires dealing with the authorities in Kabul.
He said the Taliban also had reasons to expand ties with India, including gaining leverage in its dispute with Pakistan and strengthening its domestic position. Nevertheless, Pakistan retains advantages through its shared border with Afghanistan, social and religious links, and established connections with Taliban leaders.
Sharma also said China’s role as a potential mediator was complicated by Pakistan’s need to seek help in resolving a dispute with a group Islamabad once regarded as an ally. Beijing, meanwhile, remains concerned about the presence of Uyghur militant groups in Afghanistan, he said.
The shifting relationships among the Taliban, Pakistan, India and China underscore the increasingly complex regional competition over Afghanistan, where former alliances are being tested by security disputes and changing diplomatic interests.
The report is based on an interview with Raghav Sharma, director of the Centre for Afghanistan Studies at O.P. Jindal Global University in India, published by Afghanistan International Radio on October 21, 2026.