Soft Power in Hard Times: India’s Cautious Re-engagement with Taliban ruled Afghanistan

This article analyses India’s soft power strategy in Afghanistan across three phases: its consolidation (2001–2021), abrupt disruption following the Taliban’s return, and cautious recalibration thereafter. It contends that, despite the inherent limits of soft power in coercive environments, humanitarian and development assistance has functioned as the primary vehicle for New Delhi’s pragmatic re-engagement with the Taliban regime after 2021. Drawing on two decades of Indian aid diplomacy and post-2021 policy shifts, the study examines how India has balanced principled commitment to inclusive governance with strategic imperatives of maintaining relevance and countering rival influence. The analysis illuminates the tension between values and realpolitik in India’s evolving Afghanistan policy and evaluates the opportunities and constraints of its current “humanitarian-plus” approach within a broader quest for regional stability and strategic autonomy.