Latest news with #TAPI
NDTV
10-07-2025
- Business
- NDTV
How Taliban Has Now Become A Pawn In India-Pak Power Play
Afghanistan, long a theatre of regional contestation, continues to serve as a strategic chessboard for India and Pakistan - two historic rivals with deeply intertwined security, strategic, and economic interests in the region. This geopolitical manoeuvring was exemplified in India's abstention at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on a resolution calling for political inclusion and the reversal of the Taliban's repressive policies. Justifying its stance, India's Permanent Representative to the UN, Parvathaneni Harish, argued that a 'business as usual' approach without targeted new initiatives would do little to mitigate terrorism in the region. Meanwhile, Pakistan's continued senior-level diplomatic engagement with the Taliban, even as it accuses the administration of harbouring anti-Pakistan militant outfits in Afghanistan, underlines the duplicity of its approach. Why Afghanistan Is Important For Both For both India and Pakistan, Afghanistan serves not just as a site for the externalisation of their broader conflict, but also as a crucial gateway to Central Asia, critical to their economic and trade ambitions. Access to energy corridors and untapped mineral resources, including rare earth elements, elevates Afghanistan's geostrategic value. At a January meeting this year between India's foreign secretary and the Taliban foreign minister, both sides agreed to promote the use of Iran's Chabahar Port to facilitate regional trade and commercial activities. Similarly, regional energy initiatives, such as the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline, hinge on political stability and secure transit through Afghan territory. Water resources also factor in these regional stakes. Upstream river systems originate in Afghanistan and flow into Pakistan, making them a vital source. New Delhi, aware of this dynamic, also sees potential leverage in the evolving regional water politics. Moreover, the dominant Pashtun community in Afghanistan remains central to both countries' strategic calculus, despite their differing motivations and methods. The Pashtun population, concentrated on both sides of the contested Durand Line and including a small minority in India, has historically influenced New Delhi and Islamabad's policies toward Kabul, adding a complex layer of ethno-political considerations to the equation. Terrorist Launchpads India's cautious approach is rooted in its experience with Pakistan-backed militant groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), which was formed in Afghanistan's Kunar province, and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), whose earlier iterations reportedly trained Kashmiri militants in camps such as Khalid bin Walid during the Taliban administration of the 1990s. India's current strategy is focused on providing humanitarian aid and engaging diplomatically with the Taliban to maintain goodwill, while simultaneously pressing for security assurances to prevent Afghanistan from once again becoming a launchpad for anti-India militant outfits. New Delhi remains wary of an Afghanistan under significant Pakistani influence. Both JeM and LeT have pledged allegiance to the Taliban and provided fighters to the outfit in the late 1990s, asserting their position as valuable allies. In return, the Taliban allowed these groups to operate camps, recruit fighters, and plot cross-border attacks. While the recent status remains obscure, a 2022 UN report suggests that LeT and JeM have maintained training camps in Afghanistan following the Taliban's 2021 takeover of Kabul. According to the report, JeM maintained eight training camps in Nangarhar province, three of which were directly under Taliban control, while LeT operated three camps in Nangarhar and Kunar provinces. Azhar also reportedly travelled to Afghanistan post-2021 to meet with senior Taliban leaders, seeking operational space and continued support for the outfit. Proxy Terror Islamabad has long outsourced militant activities to proxies operating from Afghan territory, while allowing the above-ground presence of organisations like JeM and LeT within Pakistan. These groups are known to operate seminaries, fundraising fronts, and charitable organisations under the guise of political and social work, thereby gaining a degree of legitimacy. A recent statement during an interview by Bilawal Bhutto, member of the National Assembly of Pakistan, suggesting that JeM chief Masood Azhar might be in Afghanistan and that Pakistan can't possibly take actions that are out of the purview of even NATO forces, suggests potential efforts to deflect responsibility and maintain plausible deniability. This strategy enables Pakistan to insulate itself from international scrutiny while continuing to indirectly support militant networks. Alongside its pragmatic engagement with the Taliban administration, it is essential for New Delhi to sustain international pressure through global fora such as the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and with the support of allied partners.
Qatar Tribune
07-07-2025
- Business
- Qatar Tribune
Pakistan's potential path to becoming an energy transit state
Tribune News Network Doha At the crossroads of strategic ambition and regional complexity lies Pakistan's untapped potential to emerge as a critical energy transit state—linking the hydrocarbon-rich Gulf and Central Asian states with the energy-hungry economies of South and East Asia. In its latest Energy Research Paper, the Al-Attiyah Foundation delves into Pakistan's efforts to harness its geographical advantage, analysing over US$ 35 billion in energy investments from China, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar, as well as major transnational projects like the Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan–India Pipeline (TAPI), Central Asia–South Asia Electricity Transmission and Trade Project (CASA-1000) and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). The analysis reveals a complex web of opportunity and vulnerability. CPEC, a project that involves upgrading roads, railways, and energy infrastructure to facilitate trade and transportation between the Pakistan and China, has delivered over 13 GW of power capacity through coal, hydro, solar, and wind projects. However, it has also contributed to Pakistan's US$ 1.4 billion in unpaid energy debts and drawn security risks—including militant attacks on Chinese workers between 2021 and 2024. Qatar's US$ 15 billion LNG agreement addressed Pakistan's gas deficit but has become a financial strain amid declining domestic energy demand and currency depreciation. Meanwhile, instability in Afghanistan threatens to derail the US$ 7.7 billion TAPI pipeline and the US$ 1.16 billion CASA-1000 transmission line, both of which are critical to Pakistan's regional integration and energy diversification. Despite these challenges, serious momentum is building. Pakistan's domestic energy system remains under strain, with over 60% of demand met by imported fossil fuels and widespread transmission losses weakening grid reliability. Yet a shift is underway. Solar and wind energy now account for 10% of installed capacity, and the government has pledged to reach 60% clean energy by 2030, including targets to electrify 30% of road transport. Meeting this goal will require 22 GW of new renewable capacity, competitive procurement, and grid modernisation. However, persistent fiscal stress, climate vulnerability, and geopolitical friction continue to test Pakistan's credibility as a stable energy partner in the region.
Express Tribune
05-07-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
ECO's way forward
Listen to article Attaining proactivity in regional cooperation is becoming a sine qua non as distractions continue to haunt geopolitics. The 17th ECO Summit in Azerbaijan's city of Khankendi took a leap forward as it called for buoying understanding among the member states to overcome bilateral frictions and ensure that geo-economics takes roots. Pakistan flagged the Iran-Israel war, the adamant attitude of India, especially the IWT's unilateral suspension, and the backlash of terrorism from Afghanistan as obstacles hampering regional serenity and development. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif underscored that the 10-nation Eurasian bloc offers the 'best hope' for a unified response, and there should not be any looking back. Pakistan also underlined the necessity of quality development in relevance with climate change considerations. It also proposed developing low-emission corridors, ECO-wide carbon market platforms and a regional disaster resistance system. It's high time the cobweb of railways, roads and waterways, which have successfully been laid down across the region, came to benefit the common man in terms of employment, cheap products and a semblance of growth. So is the case with energy channels that are still in limbo, like the IP gas pipeline, TAPI, CASA-1000 and the trans-Afghan railway connectivity. The point that some of the states are mulling a 'military alliance' in the region has been promptly negated by Pakistan, as it hopes India will give up its confrontational policy and make SAARC a viable entity. Peace between Pakistan and India is indispensable if regional cooperation is to materialise. The potential could be gauged from the fact that according to SBP, imports from India totalled $211.5 million in the first 11 months of FY25; and in May alone when the conflict broke out, imports stood at $15 million. The India-based Global Trade Research Initiative has also reported recently that India's unofficial exports to Pakistan are estimated at $10 billion annually, routed primarily through Dubai, Colombo and Singapore. The need is to get it straight for the collective good of the region.
Arab News
28-04-2025
- Business
- Arab News
Pakistan invites Turkmenistan's energy companies to set up operations amid investment push
ISLAMABAD: Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal has invited Turkmenistan's energy companies to set up operations in Pakistan, state media reported on Monday, as Islamabad seeks foreign investment to boost the country's economy and resolve its energy issues. Energy-starved Pakistan is actively pursuing energy cooperation with Turkmenistan, particularly through the TAPI (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India) gas pipeline project. This initiative aims to transport natural gas from Turkmenistan's Galkynysh field to Pakistan, passing through Afghanistan and extending to India as well. Pakistan has attempted to strengthen cooperation in energy, tourism, mines and minerals as well as other priority sectors in recent months in its bid to attract international investment. It seeks to establish itself as a trade and transit hub that connects landlocked Central Asian states to the global economy. 'Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal has invited energy companies of Turkmenistan to establish operations in Pakistan,' Radio Pakistan said in a report, adding that the minister was speaking at an event in Ashgabat. Iqbal said the TAPI gas pipeline project would contribute to regional energy security and support Pakistan's green energy transition, deeming it essential to cope with climate change impacts. The TAPI project was envisaged in the early 1990s and officially agreed upon in December 2010. It has primarily been delayed due to security concerns, geopolitical tensions, funding challenges and bureaucratic hurdles. Pakistan faces significant gas and energy problems that have deepened over the years due to a combination of rising demand, depleting domestic resources and poor management. The country's natural gas reserves are rapidly declining, while efforts to discover new fields have lagged behind. Pakistan has increasingly relied on imported liquefied natural gas which strains its foreign exchange reserves and exposes it to global price fluctuations. Frequent power shortages known as load-shedding disrupt daily life and hurt economic productivity. Outdated infrastructure, inefficiencies in the energy sector, circular debt and policy inconsistencies have made it difficult to develop long-term sustainable solutions.
Express Tribune
09-04-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
Kazakhstan to join TAPI Gas Pipeline Project
Listen to article Kazakhstan is set to officially announce its participation in the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project, heralding a new chapter in regional energy cooperation. This development was shared by the Ambassador of Kazakhstan during a meeting with Pakistan's Federal Minister for Science and Technology, Khalid Hussain Magsi, held in Islamabad on Tuesday. The high-level meeting focused on strengthening bilateral ties in key areas, including education, scientific research, and technological collaboration. Both sides expressed a firm commitment to deepening strategic cooperation between Kazakhstan and Pakistan. Khalid Hussain Magsi revealed that both nations are in the process of finalising several Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) aimed at boosting collaboration in the education sector. He welcomed Kazakhstan's interest in enhancing institutional linkages, particularly the proposal to establish a joint research centre at the National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST) in Islamabad. The Kazakh ambassador underscored the importance of creating a conducive business environment and proposed collaborative measures to curb smuggling. He emphasised that Kazakhstan views Pakistan as a key regional partner in achieving shared goals of economic connectivity and scientific advancement.
