Remarks by DG ISSI Ambassador Sohail Mahmood at the Book Launch “Perspectives on Post-Taliban Afghanistan And Geopolitical Footsteps”
ISSI, 27 January 2025
It is a pleasure to welcome everyone to the ISSI for this launch ceremony. Edited by Shehryar Khan, the book Navigating Uncertainty: Perspectives on Post-Taliban Afghanistan and Geopolitical Footsteps is a collaborative venture of Hanns Seidel Foundation and the National Dialogue Forum. Various facets of the situation in the post-Taliban Afghanistan have been explored by eminent practitioners, academics, and media professionals.
We are delighted that some of the contributors are with us today, in-person or online. And we are honoured to have former Foreign Minister Khurram Dastgir Khan joining us as the Chief Guest. His vast practical experience at the Ministerial level – ranging from Commerce to Defence to Foreign Affairs to Water Resources – gives him a unique vantage point to comment insightfully on the subject today. As an exceptional bibliophile and seasoned practitioner, we always benefit from his words of wisdom.
Distinguished participants,
For more than four decades now, Afghanistan has figured prominently in the news. In broad headlines, these include: The Soviet invasion in 1979, the massive outflow of refugees, the gun-running and narcotics trafficking, the concertation of fighters from different parts of the world to partake in the Afghan Jihad, the protracted UN-facilitated proximity talks, the eventual Geneva Accords and the Soviet withdrawal, the end of the Cold War, the country’s lapse into a fratricidal civil war, the growing profile of Al-Qaeda, the rise and rule of the Taliban (1.0), the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the subsequent U.S.-led military operation, the 20-years long ISAF presence, the incompetence and corruption of successive Kabul regimes during this period, and finally the dramatic events of August 2021. Hundreds of thousands of lives, and trillions of dollars later, the return of the Taliban to power in Afghanistan was indeed nothing short of a seismic shift. Ever since, the research and policy communities have been engaged in efforts to understand how the situation evolved to culminate in such an outcome. Equally, nearly every concerned capital in the world today is contemplating how best to deal with the resurfaced mandarins in Kabul – ensuring simultaneously that the principles of international law are not scarified, that their own key interests are safeguarded, and that the international community’s broader expectations are effectively advanced. This is a delicate balancing act, and indeed a stiff test of statecraft for everyone.
The present book is also an attempt by the regional and international Afghanistan- watchers to offer both insights into the evolving situation and ideas on a possible way forward. Specifically, the book delves into Afghanistan’s internal dynamics, its external relations, and the sharp inter-play of geo-political factors. The purported aim is to gather a rich array of perspectives to somehow capture the enormous complexity of the multifaceted Afghan reality. An effort has been made to go beyond the traditional portrayal of Afghanistan as a zone of conflict and in effect shed light on the “lived realities” of its people. The book’s ambition is to present a comprehensive and nuanced account of the country — which is undoubtedly beset with myriad of challenges but also has reasonable prospects for a better future.
In my view, there are three key takeaways from this book. First, the last four tumultuous decades of Afghanistan’s history do offer a range of lessons on the need to approach the country holistically and to plan better and inclusively for any future peace-building exercise. Second, ambitious strategies aiming from conquest to isolation have minimal prospects in Afghanistan; instead, practical engagement and a good mix of positive and negative incentives might yield some desired results. Third, notwithstanding the acts of omission and commission by Afghanistan’s rulers, the primary focus of the international community has to be the more than 40 million Afghan people and their welfare.
As a close neighbour, Pakistan has a unique and enduring interest in Afghanistan’s stability and prosperity. The shared history, cultural links, and economic interdependence between the two countries necessitate a collaborative approach to address common challenges. It is essential that the Interim Afghan authorities help resolve the issue of cross-border terrorism in an acceptable manner. This is not only in the best interest of Pakistan-Afghanistan bilateral relations but also of long-term internal stability of Afghanistan itself. The dividends of pragmatic cooperation on this account would be evident across multiple domains – from enhanced levels of trade to economic integration to hard and soft connectivity.
Going forward, the importance of fostering trust, building regional consensus, prioritizing humanitarian concerns, and ensuring constructive engagement of the global community cannot be stressed enough. While banking on the resilience of the Afghan people, the rulers in Afghanistan would have to act with extreme wisdom on their own part as well. Short-sighted perspectives and myopic strategies aimed at pursuing tactical advantages would only compound the complex challenges and continue to prevent Afghanistan from realizing its true potential. It is time for Kabul to turn the page and engage with the Afghan people and Afghanistan’s international partners with greater sensitivity and more prudence.
With these remarks, I welcome everyone again and wish fruitful deliberations during the event.
