Indo-Afghan Bilateral Strategic Agreement (ASP) and Dynamism of Regional Security for Afghanistan

Abstract

By observing and comparing the India’s assistance since emergence of Afghan interim government 2001 and the text of the Indo-Afghan bilateral strategic agreement (ASP) can be found that the except political and security cooperation, the rest sections of bilateral agreement are the same, in a way this agreement is like a mirror of what India has done during 2001 prior to the signing the Agreement with Afghanistan. This agreement have specific framework that both countries recognized it where points ranging from political and security cooperation to social and cultural relations. Meanwhile, the agreement refers to the three major points including: the first, attention to the long-standing friendship relations and cultural ties between India and Afghanistan, second, given the importance of economic development, regional and country efforts to strengthen governance in Afghanistan and the last point, joint cooperation between two countries in political and economic cooperation within region and beyond. By observing the Indian projects in Afghanistan before and after the agreement can be found that the relationship between Afghanistan and India is economic-centered, but because there is a third country (Pakistan) in west of South Asia region that looks regional relations in security perspective, thus two countries are also forced to consider cooperation from a bilateral and regional security standpoints for their national security. However, it seems that India is seeking to achieve its regional security targets through Afghanistan and it is beyond the just bilateral relation with Afghan government. As the result show, India’s main purpose is neutralization of Pakistan’s activities against India, thus India is trying to conduct it by strong bilateral relation with Afghan government. Even the probability might be that India is trying to inject unrest and instability in western part of Pakistan through Afghanistan. One of the reasons for this competition was mentioned in terms of proxy war in Afghanistan between rivalry of Pakistan (with geographical proximity) and India (without geographical proximity). India has longstanding friendship relation with Afghanistan, but according to the literature and findings in this research shows that Afghanistan became important for India since Pakistan’s formation and independence (1947), thus it might be true that India has tried to keep covert its main security priority under commitment to the historical and cultural ties and development assistance with Afghanistan. Some quotation from interviewees and the result suggest thinking about probability of this statement. It is completely fits with Realist perspective in the international relation that is one of component of RSCT as well. Thus, Afghanistan because of its geographical determinism and insulator status sentenced to suffer from conflicts and animosity of its neighbors and dominantly rivalry of India and Pakistan.