Four Taliban cabinet ministers have visited India over the past nine months, highlighting growing engagement between New Delhi and the Taliban as their relations with neighboring Pakistan remain strained.
The latest visit came last week, when Ataullah Omari, the Taliban’s acting minister of agriculture, traveled to New Delhi at the head of a delegation.
His trip follows earlier visits by Amir Khan Muttaqi, the Taliban’s foreign minister in October 2025; Nooruddin Azizi, their minister of industry and commerce in November 2025; and Noor Jalal Jalali, the Taliban’s public health minister in December 2025.
Speaking in New Delhi, Omari called for broader Indian support for Afghanistan’s development, particularly in modernizing the country’s agricultural sector.
“We need the support of our longtime friend India and its business community, which has stood alongside us throughout history,” he said.
The visits have coincided with a deterioration in relations between the Taliban and Pakistan.
Over the past nine months, Pakistan has carried out several airstrikes in Kabul’s border provinces, accusing militants based in Afghanistan of launching cross-border attacks. The Taliban have condemned the strikes, saying they violated Afghanistan’s sovereignty.
Following Pakistan’s latest strikes in Paktia, Paktika and Kunar about two weeks ago, India’s Ministry of External Affairs criticized the attacks and reiterated its support for Afghanistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Pakistan dismissed India’s statement as “baseless and ridiculous.”
Meanwhile, Asif Ali Durrani, Pakistan’s former special representative for Afghanistan, said Islamabad does not object to normal relations between the Taliban and India but warned that closer ties should not come at the expense of Pakistan’s security interests.
“The Taliban must decide whether Afghanistan will pursue balanced relations with regional countries, address Pakistan’s legitimate security concerns and benefit from regional trade and connectivity,” Durrani said, “or become an arena for rivalry between India and Pakistan.”
Political analysts say India’s engagement with the Taliban has expanded steadily since they returned to power in 2021, despite New Delhi’s long-standing refusal to formally recognize the Taliban rule.
“Whenever Afghanistan’s relations with Pakistan deteriorate, India tends to use the opportunity to improve its relations with Afghanistan. Conversely, when relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan are close, India sees that as a challenge to its interests. This is a distinctive feature of the relationship among the three countries,” said Sardar Mohammad Rahimi, political analyst.
The latest sign of that engagement came on Sunday, when India’s Ministry of External Affairs announced additional humanitarian assistance for Afghan migrants deported from Pakistan.
The announcement came as Pakistan intensified its campaign to detain and deport Afghan migrants, a policy that has accelerated in recent weeks and prompted growing concern among humanitarian organizations.
