On 24th February 2022, the world fundamentally changed when Vladamir Putin announced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The decision destabilised the global status quo: Europe as a continent had moved on from full-scale warfare and the new centre of geopolitical tension was China. Policymakers, across the world, had failed to gauge the extent of Putin’s expansionism. Despite his illegal annexation of the Crimean peninsula back in 2014, countries like Germany were hooked to Russian gas and UK was home to the dark money of Russian oligarchs. The miscalculations didn’t end there. Whereas most expected Ukraine to fall within, at best, weeks the conflict is now well into its fourth month. The chaotic affair, in an already pandemic-induced stressed world, has forced every nation to fend for itself. Some like Sri Lanka have already collapsed under the crushing weight of debt whereas others like Turkey face unprecedented inflation. Geopolitics has started reflecting this reality; Germany has started militarising, NATO has a new purpose, China-Russia engagement has shot up, Middle-east’s cold tensions are subduing and much more.&nbsp;

The only region that hasn’t made headlines in terms of dramatic shifts in foreign policy are former Soviet Republics of Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan. All of these countries are under authoritarian setups which draw patronage from Kremlin. With the Ukraine war, Putin doesn’t have either the time or resources to keep these regimes afloat. Smelling blood, neighbours like Turkey and China have moved in rapidly to fill in the power vacuum. This includes increasing defence engagement, accelerating decadal goals and bolstering trade talks. The region is going through unprecedented churning which includes, for the first time since the days of the Russian empire, the possibility of it moving away from Moscow’s diktats.&nbsp;&nbsp;

<h2>India and Central Asia</h2>

Post-independence, India’s primary engagement with Central Asia was largely defined by its two western neighbours, Pakistan and Afghanistan. During the 1990s, Central Asian countries played an important role in maintaining the anti-Taliban coalition, the Northern Alliance. India had supported the group to keep a check on terror threats from the Taliban regime. However, as New Delhi has expanded its worldview, the former Soviet Republics are approached with more evolved goals. They are now looked upon as a means to diversify energy needs and provide an overland route to Europe. Apart from this, the Stans also have huge deposits of rare earth elements, host one of India’s few overseas military bases (in Tajikistan) and are among emerging markets where Indian businesses can grow.&nbsp;

This changing attitude was reflected in Connect Central Asia policy of 2012. The idea was to bypass the Russians and have a more independent relationship with the region. The primary problem with the policy was establishing connectivity with the region, given it was landlocked and Pakistan blocked New Delhi’s access. This challenge was addressed with investments in the Chahbahar Port and the International North-South Transport Corridor. These projects mixed with the Ashgabat agreement&nbsp;provided India with an alternative path. However, because of sanctions on Iran, the partner India was looking at to go around Pakistan, the projects have faced multiple delays. In the meanwhile, China kept increasing its influence in the region on the back of its Belt and Road Initiative.&nbsp;

<h2>Ukraine Conflict and Russia’s loosening grip</h2>

Since the beginning of the conflict Central Asian countries have maintained strategic neutrality leaning away from Kremlin. In March itself, Uzbekistan’s then foreign minister Abdulaziz Kamilov called for the territorial integrity of Kyiv&nbsp;saying, “We recognize the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine”. Kazakhstan went even further as their First Deputy Chief of Staff of the President’s Office, Timur Suleimenov said, "Of course, Russia wanted us to be more on their side. But Kazakhstan respects the territorial integrity of Ukraine. We did not recognise and will not recognise the Crimea situation and neither the Donbas situation because the UN does not recognise them. We will only respect decisions taken at the level of the United Nations”&nbsp;Even amongst Central Asian nations, this position by Kazakhstan stands out. Firstly it shares a direct border with Russia and is fairly resource-rich, making it about as important as Ukraine in terms of Moscow's sphere of influence. Secondly, earlier this year when Nur-Sultan had seen massive protests because of inflation and popular resentment it was Russia who helped the regime get the situation under control. 

Moreover, Putin has also failed to show&nbsp;he has unquestioned support from the region. Almost immediately after the invasion, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan disputed Kremlin readouts of bilateral presidential phone calls which hinted at great support for the Russian cause. This was followed by almost all the countries either refusing to vote or abstaining during the March 2 and March 24 United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolutions condemning the invasion. Other countries which are perceived as close to Moscow, like Belarus, Syria and North Korea voted against the resolution.&nbsp;&nbsp;

<h2>Need for change in policy direction</h2>

As stated earlier, Russia’s decline has left a power vacuum which is rapidly being filled by Turkey and China. Ankara has offered to be a new mediator between the countries and the west, also pushing its defence equipment like the Byraktar drones. Beijing wants to use Central Asia as a route to connect with Europe and thus has concrete investment plans. With the economic freefall of Moscow, China has emerged as a stronger replacement. Even Iran has presented itself as an alternative to nations, in case they don’t want t to be exclusively pushed into the arms of one major player.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

India seems to be the only country of consequence in the neighbourhood which has not acknowledged the new reality of the region. Despite having a fairly active relationship with the regimes there, India has not made any fresh attempts to reach out. With the west retreating from the region, post-Afghan war, India might end up being friendless in the resource-abundant area. This can prove to be disastrous as areas here are hotbeds for radicalisation and drug trade. Lack of footprint can mean these countries can become a base for proxy warfare in India. In fact, it should be expected of hostile countries like China to use their investments as tools to stoke inflammatory sentiment against India.&nbsp;&nbsp;

<h2>Recent developments&nbsp;</h2>

India very recently has started showing signs of re-starting its engagement with Central Asia. The first decision seems to be coming to terms with the idea of a Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. New Delhi over the past few months sent a team to engage with leaders in Kabul and even provided a relief package after a deadly earthquake hit Afghanistan. The key idea is to block anti-India terror groups from operating in this region. However, this partnership shouldn’t be limited to these myopic goals.&nbsp;

Even the last dialogue with Central Asia was overtly focused on national security issues that arose from the retreat of Americans from Afghanistan. The region is underdeveloped and India can become an important partner for these countries. In fact, at the present moment, Central Asia faces a massive food insecurity crisis. Whereas India has banned all wheat exports, it still can look at long-term opportunities by making Central Asia a client state, the way UAE is.&nbsp;

But randomly listing out potential pressure points won’t be of any help as long as a formal acknowledgement doesn’t come in. Just the way India made it clear that it was going to chart out an independent path when it came to the Russia-Ukraine crises, it similarly needs to plan and engage with the region in its own standing and not as some distant player who’ll address vague security concerns.

(Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.)

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On 24th February 2022, the world fundamentally changed when Vladamir Putin announced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The decision destabilised the global status quo: Europe as a continent had moved on from full-scale warfare and the new centre of geopolitical tension was China.

On 24th February 2022, the world fundamentally changed when Vladamir Putin announced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The decision destabilised the global status quo: Europe as a continent had moved on from full-scale warfare and the new centre of geopolitical tension was China. Policymakers, across the world, had failed to gauge the extent of Putin’s expansionism. Despite his illegal annexation of the Crimean peninsula back in 2014, countries like Germany were hooked to Russian gas and UK was home to the dark money of Russian oligarchs. The miscalculations didn’t end there. Whereas most expected Ukraine to fall within, at best, weeks the conflict is now well into its fourth month. The chaotic affair, in an already pandemic-induced stressed world, has forced every nation to fend for itself. Some like Sri Lanka have already collapsed under the crushing weight of debt whereas others like Turkey face unprecedented inflation. Geopolitics has started reflecting this reality; Germany has started militarising, NATO has a new purpose, China-Russia engagement has shot up, Middle-east’s cold tensions are subduing and much more. The only region that hasn’t made headlines in terms of dramatic shifts in foreign policy are former Soviet Republics of Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan. All of these countries are under authoritarian setups which draw patronage from Kremlin. With the Ukraine war, Putin doesn’t have either the time or resources to keep these regimes afloat. Smelling blood, neighbours like Turkey and China have moved in rapidly to fill in the power vacuum. This includes increasing defence engagement, accelerating decadal goals and bolstering trade talks. The region is going through unprecedented churning which includes, for the first time since the days of the Russian empire, the possibility of it moving away from Moscow’s diktats. India and Central Asia Post-independence, India’s primary engagement with Central Asia was largely defined by its two western neighbours, Pakistan and Afghanistan. During the 1990s, Central Asian countries played an important role in maintaining the anti-Taliban coalition, the Northern Alliance. India had supported the group to keep a check on terror threats from the Taliban regime. However, as New Delhi has expanded its worldview, the former Soviet Republics are approached with more evolved goals. They are now looked upon as a means to diversify energy needs and provide an overland route to Europe. Apart from this, the Stans also have huge deposits of rare earth elements, host one of India’s few overseas military bases (in Tajikistan) and are among emerging markets where Indian businesses can grow. This changing attitude was reflected in Connect Central Asia policy of 2012. The idea was to bypass the Russians and have a more independent relationship with the region. The primary problem with the policy was establishing connectivity with the region, given it was landlocked and Pakistan blocked New Delhi’s access. This challenge was addressed with investments in the Chahbahar Port and the International North-South Transport Corridor. These projects mixed with the Ashgabat agreement provided India with an alternative path. However, because of sanctions on Iran, the partner India was looking at to go around Pakistan, the projects have faced multiple delays. In the meanwhile, China kept increasing its influence in the region on the back of its Belt and Road Initiative. Ukraine Conflict and Russia’s loosening grip Since the beginning of the conflict Central Asian countries have maintained strategic neutrality leaning away from Kremlin. In March itself, Uzbekistan’s then foreign minister Abdulaziz Kamilov called for the territorial integrity of Kyiv saying, “We recognize the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine”. Kazakhstan went even further as their First Deputy Chief of Staff of the President’s Office, Timur Suleimenov said, "Of course, Russia wanted us to be more on their side. But Kazakhstan respects the territorial integrity of Ukraine. We did not recognise and will not recognise the Crimea situation and neither the Donbas situation because the UN does not recognise them. We will only respect decisions taken at the level of the United Nations” Even amongst Central Asian nations, this position by Kazakhstan stands out. Firstly it shares a direct border with Russia and is fairly resource-rich, making it about as important as Ukraine in terms of Moscow's sphere of influence. Secondly, earlier this year when Nur-Sultan had seen massive protests because of inflation and popular resentment it was Russia who helped the regime get the situation under control. Moreover, Putin has also failed to show he has unquestioned support from the region. Almost immediately after the invasion, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan disputed Kremlin readouts of bilateral presidential phone calls which hinted at great support for the Russian cause. This was followed by almost all the countries either refusing to vote or abstaining during the March 2 and March 24 United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolutions condemning the invasion. Other countries which are perceived as close to Moscow, like Belarus, Syria and North Korea voted against the resolution. Need for change in policy direction As stated earlier, Russia’s decline has left a power vacuum which is rapidly being filled by Turkey and China. Ankara has offered to be a new mediator between the countries and the west, also pushing its defence equipment like the Byraktar drones. Beijing wants to use Central Asia as a route to connect with Europe and thus has concrete investment plans. With the economic freefall of Moscow, China has emerged as a stronger replacement. Even Iran has presented itself as an alternative to nations, in case they don’t want t to be exclusively pushed into the arms of one major player. India seems to be the only country of consequence in the neighbourhood which has not acknowledged the new reality of the region. Despite having a fairly active relationship with the regimes there, India has not made any fresh attempts to reach out. With the west retreating from the region, post-Afghan war, India might end up being friendless in the resource-abundant area. This can prove to be disastrous as areas here are hotbeds for radicalisation and drug trade. Lack of footprint can mean these countries can become a base for proxy warfare in India. In fact, it should be expected of hostile countries like China to use their investments as tools to stoke inflammatory sentiment against India. Recent developments India very recently has started showing signs of re-starting its engagement with Central Asia. The first decision seems to be coming to terms with the idea of a Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. New Delhi over the past few months sent a team to engage with leaders in Kabul and even provided a relief package after a deadly earthquake hit Afghanistan. The key idea is to block anti-India terror groups from operating in this region. However, this partnership shouldn’t be limited to these myopic goals. Even the last dialogue with Central Asia was overtly focused on national security issues that arose from the retreat of Americans from Afghanistan. The region is underdeveloped and India can become an important partner for these countries. In fact, at the present moment, Central Asia faces a massive food insecurity crisis. Whereas India has banned all wheat exports, it still can look at long-term opportunities by making Central Asia a client state, the way UAE is. But randomly listing out potential pressure points won’t be of any help as long as a formal acknowledgement doesn’t come in. Just the way India made it clear that it was going to chart out an independent path when it came to the Russia-Ukraine crises, it similarly needs to plan and engage with the region in its own standing and not as some distant player who’ll address vague security concerns. (Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.) You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here. WATCH WION LIVE HERE ×

Why India needs to update its Central Asia policy

Summit level meet once in two&nbsp;years, establishment of a&nbsp;secretariat for practical coordination, more ministerial level engagement will be among the key outcomes of the upcoming India-Central Asia summit that will take place on January 27.

The meet, which will happen virtually, will be the first such summit between India and the five&nbsp;Central Asian countries--Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan as they set to increase engagement to a higher level.&nbsp;India and the Central Asian countries already have a foreign minister-level mechanism that has met two&nbsp;times on an annual basis so far, the last being in December 2021.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/despite-crisis-kazakh-president-tokayevs-india-visit-on-schedule-443694">Also read |&nbsp;Despite crisis, Kazakh President Tokayev's India visit on schedule</a>

The "India-Central Asia Centre", which is expected to be established in Delhi will act as the secretariat for the India-Central Asia Summit coordination, which henceforth becomes a permanent fixture as ties are taken to a higher level. The suggestion for the establishment of such a secretariat was given by India and will&nbsp;provide an institutional framework&nbsp;for the development of relationships.

Another key outcome will be the establishment of ministerial-level platforms for engagement in 4 key areas--political issues and development cooperation, trade and connectivity, culture and tourism and, most importantly defense and security.&nbsp;At the non-governmental level increased&nbsp;interaction is being proposed between business chambers, think-tanks.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/india-russia-exchange-non-paper-on-engagement-in-central-asia-439953">Also read |&nbsp;India, Russia exchange 'non-paper' on engagement in Central Asia</a>

A special emphasis will be on enlarging engagement when it comes to Information technology sector.&nbsp;India has already assisted in the establishment of IT park in Uzbek capital Tashkent, the first phase being inaugurated in 2019. In Tajikistan, with a grant of $ 0.6 million, an Information and Technology Centre (Bedil Centre) was commissioned in 2006 by Indian support and the&nbsp;​project trained almost all the first-generation IT experts in government sector of the country.

New Delhi has been pitching for an Iran-based India-built Chabahar port to increase connectivity and trade from landlocked central Asia to the wider Indian Ocean region. Uzbekistan, a doubly landlocked country, Kazakhstan have been enthusiastic supporters of the use of ports to increase connectivity. The continuous focus has been on the share civilizational connect, which also remains the much-celebrated aspect of the ties.&nbsp;As part of defense industrial cooperation, India has offered a Line of Credit of &nbsp;40 million to Uzbekistan. Indian, Uzbek armies had undertaken 10 day-long joint military exercises at Ranikhet, Uttarakhand last year in which 45 soldiers from each side participated.

The announcement of the summit came last week and comes even as both sides, this year mark the 30th year of establishment of formal diplomatic ties. Ministry of external affairs in a statement said, "During the first India-Central Asia Summit, the Leaders are expected to discuss steps to take forward India-Central Asia relations to newer heights. They are also expected to exchange views on regional and international issues of interest, especially the evolving regional security situation."

Afghanistan naturally will be one of the main points of discussion, given 3 Central Asian countries--&nbsp;Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan share direct land border with the country. The Taliban takeover of Kabul last year has complicated the situation, with many of these countries fearing a spillover into their territories.&nbsp;The National security advisors (NSAs) of the central Asian countries had last year visited Delhi for a meeting on Afghanistan in which Russian, Iranian NSA level counterparts had also participated.

The summit comes as New Delhi has been expanding depth of its commitments with all central Asian capitals. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited all the central Asian countries in 2015, which was the first of its kind tour by any Indian Prime minister. EAM Jaishankar had last year visited two Central Asian countries - Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. India has in the past announced a $ 1 billion line of credit for priority development projects in fields such as connectivity, energy, IT, healthcare, education, agriculture, etc for the entire region also known as "the stans" since all the countries in the region end with suffix stan, which in Persian means "land of".

Summit level meet once in two years, establishment of a secretariat for practical coordination, more ministerial level engagement will be among the key outcomes of the upcoming India-Central Asia summit that will take place on January 27.

Summit level meet once in two years, establishment of a secretariat for practical coordination, more ministerial level engagement will be among the key outcomes of the upcoming India-Central Asia summit that will take place on January 27. The meet, which will happen virtually, will be the first such summit between India and the five Central Asian countries--Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan as they set to increase engagement to a higher level. India and the Central Asian countries already have a foreign minister-level mechanism that has met two times on an annual basis so far, the last being in December 2021. Also read | Despite crisis, Kazakh President Tokayev's India visit on schedule The "India-Central Asia Centre", which is expected to be established in Delhi will act as the secretariat for the India-Central Asia Summit coordination, which henceforth becomes a permanent fixture as ties are taken to a higher level. The suggestion for the establishment of such a secretariat was given by India and will provide an institutional framework for the development of relationships. Another key outcome will be the establishment of ministerial-level platforms for engagement in 4 key areas--political issues and development cooperation, trade and connectivity, culture and tourism and, most importantly defense and security. At the non-governmental level increased interaction is being proposed between business chambers, think-tanks. Also read | India, Russia exchange 'non-paper' on engagement in Central Asia A special emphasis will be on enlarging engagement when it comes to Information technology sector. India has already assisted in the establishment of IT park in Uzbek capital Tashkent, the first phase being inaugurated in 2019. In Tajikistan, with a grant of $ 0.6 million, an Information and Technology Centre (Bedil Centre) was commissioned in 2006 by Indian support and the project trained almost all the first-generation IT experts in government sector of the country. New Delhi has been pitching for an Iran-based India-built Chabahar port to increase connectivity and trade from landlocked central Asia to the wider Indian Ocean region. Uzbekistan, a doubly landlocked country, Kazakhstan have been enthusiastic supporters of the use of ports to increase connectivity. The continuous focus has been on the share civilizational connect, which also remains the much-celebrated aspect of the ties. As part of defense industrial cooperation, India has offered a Line of Credit of 40 million to Uzbekistan. Indian, Uzbek armies had undertaken 10 day-long joint military exercises at Ranikhet, Uttarakhand last year in which 45 soldiers from each side participated. The announcement of the summit came last week and comes even as both sides, this year mark the 30th year of establishment of formal diplomatic ties. Ministry of external affairs in a statement said, "During the first India-Central Asia Summit, the Leaders are expected to discuss steps to take forward India-Central Asia relations to newer heights. They are also expected to exchange views on regional and international issues of interest, especially the evolving regional security situation." Afghanistan naturally will be one of the main points of discussion, given 3 Central Asian countries-- Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan share direct land border with the country. The Taliban takeover of Kabul last year has complicated the situation, with many of these countries fearing a spillover into their territories. The National security advisors (NSAs) of the central Asian countries had last year visited Delhi for a meeting on Afghanistan in which Russian, Iranian NSA level counterparts had also participated. The summit comes as New Delhi has been expanding depth of its commitments with all central Asian capitals. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited all the central Asian countries in 2015, which was the first of its kind tour by any Indian Prime minister. EAM Jaishankar had last year visited two Central Asian countries - Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. India has in the past announced a $ 1 billion line of credit for priority development projects in fields such as connectivity, energy, IT, healthcare, education, agriculture, etc for the entire region also known as "the stans" since all the countries in the region end with suffix stan, which in Persian means "land of".

India, Central Asia to hold summit once in two years, establish secretariat for coordination

India and five central Asian countries - Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and the Kyrgyz Republic have vowed to increase engagement on several areas with connectivity being the top focus area.

India and five central Asian countries - Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and the Kyrgyz Republic have vowed to increase engagement on several areas with connectivity being the top focus area. The foreign minister of these all these countries met virtually, along with the Afghan foreign minister who was a special invite at the meet. In his opening statement, India's external affairs minister Dr S Jaishankar highlighted the "commonality of views on various regional and international issues" and since "we face common challenges of terrorism, extremism, drug trafficking and such other issues. All these commonalities make us a natural partner in our developmental journey." During the meet, India announced $ 1 billion Line of Credit for "priority developmental projects" in Central Asian countries in the fields of connectivity, energy, IT, healthcare, education, agriculture and offered to provide grant assistance for implementation of High Impact Community Development Projects (HICDP) for furthering socio-economic development. A joint statement after the meet said, "the ministers expressed their continued interest in further developing the transit and transport potential of their countries, improving the logistics network of the region and promoting joint initiatives to create regional and international transport corridors." The ministers of the Central Asian countries "appreciated" India’s efforts to modernize the infrastructure of the Chabahar port in Iran which the joint statement said, "could become an important link in trade and transport communications between the markets of Central and South Asia." New Delhi is keen to increase connectivity to the region via Chabahar port and is even planning on an air corridor. It already has an air corridor with Afghanistan bringing goods from Kabul and other parts to cities like Delhi and Mumbai. On the issue of terrorism, the joint statement, without mentioning Pakistan said, "strongly condemn terrorism in all its forms and manifestations" and reaffirmed the "determination of their countries to combat this menace by destroying terrorist safe-havens, networks, infrastructure and funding channels." Adding further, the ministers "underlined the need for every country to ensure that its territory is not used to launch terrorist attacks against other countries." This is the second such meet of the India-Central Asian countries foreign ministers. The first such meeting, which was a physical one had taken place in Uzbekistan's Samarkand in 2019 and aimed to become a platform to increase and strengthen New Delhi's ties with the region which it sees as its "extended neighbourhood". On Afghanistan, the joint statement called for the "settlement of the Afghan conflict on the principle of Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled peace process." and emphasized on "preserving the socio-economic development and political gains made by Afghanistan in the last 19 years." Three Central Asian countries--Tajikistan, Uzbekistan Turkmenistan share a land border with Afghanistan and that is why stability in the country is something all of them are keen on.

India and five Central Asian countries vow to increase engagement; New Delhi announces $1 billion line of credit

Peace and stability in Afghanistan was the main focus of India at the 1st India-Central Asia dialogue in Samarkand, Uzbekistan in which External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj led the delegation.&nbsp;

Speaking at the dialogue, External Affair minister said, "peaceful and stable Afghanistan, which lies at the Heart of Asia, can be a bridge to connect Central Asia with South Asia."

Afghanistan's FM Salahuddin Rabbani was also present at the dialogue.&nbsp;

Hitting out at the "scourge of terrorism", Sushma Swaraj said, "We need to ask that who these terrorists are, who funds them, how do they find sustenance, who protects and sponsors them".&nbsp;

Adding, "For almost two decades now, these are the people who would not let Afghanistan return to peace and normalcy. Terrorism seriously erodes all avenues of development which a country can have. No business development, no investment can take place in a country suffering from terrorism."

Reiterating New Delhi's official stand on the Afghan peace process, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said, "India supports all efforts for peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan which are inclusive and Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled" and "efforts should preserve the gains of the last 18 years. The violence and terror imposed on Afghan people should end. It should strengthen unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country."

New Delhi has been a major development partner of Afghanistan and has extended assistance worth over US$ 3 billion to the country. &nbsp;Under the ‘New Development Partnership’ launched in September 2017, new projects are being taken up which include the Shahtoot Dam which is a drinking water project for Kabul city, low-cost housing in Nangarhar province, 116 High Impact Community Development Projects.&nbsp;

Over 3500 Afghan nationals are trained and receive education in India every year. India built the Afghan Parliament and the India Afghanistan friendship dam in Herat which were inaugurated by PM Modi who has been to the country twice.

Focusing on connectivity, EAM said, "While geographically Afghanistan and Central Asia are landlocked, there are several ways in which India, Afghanistan and the Central Asian countries can join hands to work on promoting connectivity in the region so that trade and commerce may flow between us and our people to people exchanges may prosper."&nbsp;

India has two projects to connect Afghanistan with India. The Chabahar port and the India Afghanistan air corridor. India has partially taken over Chabahar port, which has been built with New Delhi's help and will provide a viable and operational trade route to connect to Afghanistan and Central Asia. New Delhi is also looking at developing the Chabahar-Zahedan railway link which would bring it closer to the Zaranj-Delaram road link which India has already built in Afghanistan.&nbsp;

Central Asian countries are also increasing connectivity with Afghanistan.&nbsp;

Uzbekistan has built a rail link between Hairatan to Mazar-i-Sharif and reports suggest that it might be further extended to Heart.

During the dialogue, India also announced a 2-week training course for 8 diplomats from each of the five Central Asian countries at the Foreign Service Institute in New Delhi.

PM Narendra Modi had visited all the five Central Asian countries in 2015 and India has been focusing on increasing ties with the region.

Peace and stability in Afghanistan was the main focus of India at the 1st India-Central Asia dialogue in Samarkand, Uzbekistan in which External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj led the delegation.

Peace and stability in Afghanistan was the main focus of India at the 1st India-Central Asia dialogue in Samarkand, Uzbekistan in which External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj led the delegation. Speaking at the dialogue, External Affair minister said, "peaceful and stable Afghanistan, which lies at the Heart of Asia, can be a bridge to connect Central Asia with South Asia." Afghanistan's FM Salahuddin Rabbani was also present at the dialogue. Hitting out at the "scourge of terrorism", Sushma Swaraj said, "We need to ask that who these terrorists are, who funds them, how do they find sustenance, who protects and sponsors them". Adding, "For almost two decades now, these are the people who would not let Afghanistan return to peace and normalcy. Terrorism seriously erodes all avenues of development which a country can have. No business development, no investment can take place in a country suffering from terrorism." Reiterating New Delhi's official stand on the Afghan peace process, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said, "India supports all efforts for peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan which are inclusive and Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled" and "efforts should preserve the gains of the last 18 years. The violence and terror imposed on Afghan people should end. It should strengthen unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country." New Delhi has been a major development partner of Afghanistan and has extended assistance worth over US$ 3 billion to the country. Under the ‘New Development Partnership’ launched in September 2017, new projects are being taken up which include the Shahtoot Dam which is a drinking water project for Kabul city, low-cost housing in Nangarhar province, 116 High Impact Community Development Projects. Over 3500 Afghan nationals are trained and receive education in India every year. India built the Afghan Parliament and the India Afghanistan friendship dam in Herat which were inaugurated by PM Modi who has been to the country twice. Focusing on connectivity, EAM said, "While geographically Afghanistan and Central Asia are landlocked, there are several ways in which India, Afghanistan and the Central Asian countries can join hands to work on promoting connectivity in the region so that trade and commerce may flow between us and our people to people exchanges may prosper." India has two projects to connect Afghanistan with India. The Chabahar port and the India Afghanistan air corridor. India has partially taken over Chabahar port, which has been built with New Delhi's help and will provide a viable and operational trade route to connect to Afghanistan and Central Asia. New Delhi is also looking at developing the Chabahar-Zahedan railway link which would bring it closer to the Zaranj-Delaram road link which India has already built in Afghanistan. Central Asian countries are also increasing connectivity with Afghanistan. Uzbekistan has built a rail link between Hairatan to Mazar-i-Sharif and reports suggest that it might be further extended to Heart. During the dialogue, India also announced a 2-week training course for 8 diplomats from each of the five Central Asian countries at the Foreign Service Institute in New Delhi. PM Narendra Modi had visited all the five Central Asian countries in 2015 and India has been focusing on increasing ties with the region.

At 1st India-Central Asia dialogue, New Delhi focuses on Afghanistan