No signs of learning the right lessons
INDIA belated and vainly scrambling to engage the Taliban on its playing field, must have been put in its place in confounding fears that the Indians might prevail upon the Taliban in view of their political clout they enjoyed with the US, but exposed its evil designs further seeking to reinforce the beaten Indo-US narrative that Pakistani support to the Afghan Taliban was principally responsible for the current retreat and debacle of the Allied Forces when its media relied on video games and footage of an American fighter aircraft landed on its belly in Arizona US several years ago.
Not only that it brought further humiliation to India but served as a red rag to the bull in disconcerting the Taliban.
Both the US and India need to soberly contemplate that if they were bent upon discounting Pakistan’s dumb-founded key role in the Allied invasion of Afghanistan, loss besides inviting an unparalleled flux of Afghan refugees, an opportunity loss of over 150 billion US dollars during the period besides inviting terrorism into its backyard losing of 80 thousand men in uniform and civilians, and wished to continue dis-believing Pakistan and blaming it for their humiliation, do they not think that they were giving too much credit to Pakistan for outmanoeuvring them?
Earlier, the outspoken Taliban spokesperson Suhail Shaheen in categorically saying that his Government had the right to speak in favour of Kashmiris as he expressed concern over human rights and political excesses against Kashmiris by India in its occupied territory, had already put India in its place.
Shaheen also befittingly debunked an Indian TV Channel question why despite assurances from the Taliban, Afghans in such large numbers thronged Kabul Airport to flee the Taliban rule, when he retorted that if the US offered citizenship to Indians, hundreds of thousands more of them would throng New Delhi Airport; eying a better future.
Would that mean they were disenchanted with India! Major (R) Aamir the former distinguished ISI Officer allays any fears and sets at rest apprehensions that the Afghan Taliban would not live up to their commitment that Afghan soil would not be allowed to be used against any country.
If one might add, the Taliban even in their last stint never allowed use of Afghan soil against any one including the US who had manufactured the staging of Nine Eleven and put it on Al-Qaeda.
To the contrary, Afghanistan was used against Pakistan, China and Uzbekistan by the US puppet Afghan Government as India launched US mercenaries Daesh/IS-K, TTP and BLA against these countries.
In Pakistan’s rhetoric being sold to the rest of the world urging the Afghan Taliban to form an all-inclusive Government, one reckons that the complexion of the set-up has to be left to those at the helm of affairs in Afghanistan, and no one should insist that it be tailored to external satisfaction as a pre-condition to their formal recognition.
How many countries are distinctively against the Hinduvta regime in India, racial discrimination in the US, European biases against Muslims and the blacks, Rohingya Muslims plight in Myanmar and Palestinians at the hands of Israel, and yet no country has made it a precondition to recognition of the offenders.
Why single out Afghanistan which like any other Country has the right to fashion a Government of its own ilk and choice.
At this juncture of a battered country destroyed by occupation forces, it is a moral responsibility of the entire world; principally the US, to help reconstruction and stabilize the country without any further axe to grind.
It is pathetic and the worst kind of human exploitation to avenge a defeat caused by the collective idiosyncrasies of Allied Nations, from the poor Afghan citizens by freezing nine billion US $ of their rightful reserves followed by IMF, World Bank, ARTF and the EU; collectively capping some 28.5 Billion US dollars, which is a poor commentary on comparative squandering of trillions by imperialists over a totally unjustified and fabricated campaign.
The US before quitting, destroyed or made the aircraft and military hardware it was leaving behind in Kabul Airport dysfunctional, which only reflected its moral degeneration compared to the Taliban who till the very last moment as per commitment, assisted and escorted the Allied Forces to safe exit.
While it appeared to be a foregone conclusion that the undefeatable Afghan Taliban would soon take over Afghanistan which is why the US made a negotiated settlement with them, it still remains a mystery as to how the Taliban recaptured power in such a lightening speed without any resistance.
While its puppet President who knew his worth; not being able to operate outside Kabul in the best of days, was making victory signs 24 hours before fleeing the country and promising to inflict telling blows upon the Taliban if they did not join the puppets on their terms, much worse is his absurd excuse justifying his flight from the scene to avoid bloodshed, when he never tried to prevent the imperial masters from spilling it in their merciless drone attacks accounting for hundreds of thousands Afghan civilians during his decade long sham Presidency.
It is also hard to believe that the hapless stooge could dare refuse to heed Joe Biden’s advice to come to terms with the Afghan Taliban; unless actually egged on to keep it going.
It is also hard not to question that if the US Administration had intelligence and could locate ISIS terror planners and suicide bombers and take them out with such precision, as they did the Kabul Airport blast Khurasan mastermind, how come they were unaware of Daesh or ISIS operating in Afghanistan under Indian and NDS wings and why did they not take care of them all those years they were in command! And now that the US says that its future challenge were Russian and Chinese influence in the region for which it seems it will activate its plan B by way of hybrid warfare, it appears that it is not prepared to learn.
—The writer is a media professional, member of Pioneering team of PTV and a veteran ex Director Programmes.
