KARACHI:
In the aftermath of the Taliban’s success in taking control of Afghanistan, many have raised concerns over the future of the country. Many stakeholders have come forward and expressed their interest in becoming a part of the new political setup. The new regime will have to deal with domestic, regional and international challenges — all at once. With regard to domestic issues, they must bring forth such statecraft wherein every linguistic and ethnic group is represented in the government. There should be a widespread consensus regarding the new government of the country.
Regionally, the Taliban must deal with two challenges: forge good relations with regional states and avoid hosting terrorist organisations about which regional states have expressed grievances. These two are inextricably tied to each other as any security nightmare that emerges will stall trade, investments, and other economic activities. Russia is desirous of making intimate relationships with the Taliban for it is scared of IS expansion in Central Asia and its Khorasan ideology; China has concerns about ETIM; India may face a new wave of insurgencies in its occupied Kashmir; Iran is worried about the Shia community; Pakistan is concerned about the rebound of TTP, which had long been inactive.
If the Afghan Taliban are keen to gain international legitimacy, they should stop providing sanctuaries to transnational terrorist outfits, especially al-Qaeda. They should refrain from violating human rights and must not engage in undemocratic practices. If shunned by the global community, the war-wrecked country will meet with multifarious problems beyond its control. To ensure the prosperity of the country, the Taliban need to consider these issues and tackle them effectively.
Abdullah Khan
Islamabad
Published in The Express Tribune, September 12th, 2021.
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