Video Producers: Maushmee Singh, Naman Shah
Video Editors: Abhishek Sharma, Kanishk Dangi
The crisis in Afghanistan is a great humanitarian crisis. The loss of the US, the world's most advanced force, at the hands of amateur Talibani fighters was unexpected.
One thing that has clearly come out is the US' underestimation of Taliban. Mistakes of the US President Joe Biden has resulted in the US' defeat in the 20-year war that saw expenditure of billions of dollars. Biden wanted to discontinue US' involvement on Afghan soil.
Those who disregarded Taliban will now have to redraw their strategies. China is open to hold talks with Taliban. India, on the other hand, is in a dilemma due to its idealistic principles.
What Lies Ahead
After Taliban took over Kabul, the posters portraying women outside shops have been painted off. Women are the most vulnerable under Taliban's Sharia laws. Sale of burqas has increased and books are hidden.
Banks are out of cash and supplies of essential items are scarce. Everyone has seen the horrific visuals of desperate Afghanis climbing onto the wheel assemblies of a plane and falling off mid-air.
In an attempt to smoothen the transition of power, 'extremist' Taliban, however, is portraying itself as 'moderate'. But there is no doubt how brutal Taliban has been. The escalation of Taliban may encourage other terrorist organisations, like Al Qaeda and ISIS.
China, US, and India
Afghanistan's crisis has become another ground for the primacy race between the US and China. China would be looking to benefit from the US' withdrawal. China is ready to talk with Taliban because it wants to protect its interests from extremist forces in the nearby Pakistan.
The US has been caught unawares. It says that people of Afghanistan can decide the future of their country on their own. The US is focusing on repatriating its citizens.
India, on the other hand, will have to out carve a strategic approach. Mainly because Pakistan's leverage has increased with Taliban's rise. How long can India afford to disregard Taliban?
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