“India & Taliban: New Allies Against Pakistan?”

Russia, Afghanistan, and Iran may lean toward supporting India against Pakistan because of overlapping strategic interests. Russia views India as a long-term defense and trade partner, while mistrusting Pakistan’s past ties with extremist groups. Afghanistan blames Pakistan for backing the Taliban and interfering in its stability, so it often sees India as a counterbalance. Iran, too, has tensions with Pakistan over sectarian militancy and border security, and it shares strong energy and trade links with India. Together, these factors align them closer to India than Pakistan. Recently, India has stepped up its engagement with the Taliban, signaling a shift in regional dynamics against Pakistan. India upgraded its Kabul mission to a full embassy, hosted Taliban Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, and held its first direct minister-level conversation with the Taliban leadership. These moves strengthen diplomatic, trade, and humanitarian cooperation between New Delhi and Kabul. At the same time, tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan have sharply escalated, with Kabul accusing Islamabad of airstrikes and interference, while Pakistan blames Afghan-based militants for cross-border attacks. By improving ties with the Taliban at a moment when Kabul’s relations with Pakistan are deteriorating, India is positioning itself as a counterbalance, reducing Pakistan’s influence in Afghanistan and gaining new leverage in the region. This is interesting and a trend to divide some nations. India’s ties with Saudi Arabia have recently cooled because of shifting regional and global alignments. While New Delhi once saw Riyadh as a vital energy supplier and partner in the Gulf, differences have grown over issues such as Kashmir, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia’s closer engagement with China. At the same time, India has been strengthening its relationship with Iran through the Chabahar port project, which directly competes with Saudi-backed routes, creating further friction. Meanwhile, Israel now stands as one of India’s closest security and intelligence partners. Shared concerns over terrorism, advanced defense cooperation, and alignment with U.S. interests have pushed India and Israel into a deeper strategic embrace, even as India steps back from its earlier reliance on Riyadh. many analysts believe Israel and Saudi Arabia may revive peace or normalization talks after the Gaza war ends, though it will depend on timing and conditions. Saudi Arabia put normalization with Israel on hold during the Gaza conflict, as the Palestinian issue remains very sensitive in the Arab and Muslim world. However, Riyadh has strong strategic reasons to eventually move forward: it wants U.S. security guarantees, access to advanced American weapons and nuclear technology, and stronger economic partnerships. For Israel, peace with Saudi Arabia would be a historic breakthrough, reshaping the Middle East by linking it more closely with Gulf states and weakening Iran’s regional influence. If such a deal emerges, it could reshape alignments: Saudi Arabia would be seen as part of a U.S.-led bloc with Israel, the UAE, and potentially India, while Iran, Turkey, and Qatar might push back. The Gaza war has delayed the process, but once the conflict cools, both Israel and Saudi Arabia may see normalization as too important to abandon.