END GAME OR A NEW GREAT GAME? INDO-PAKISTAN RIVALRY AND POST-WITHDRAWAL AFGHANISTAN

Abstract

Afghanistan is under occupation by coalition forces led by the United States for almost 18 years.
Afghanistan was invaded on the pretext of countering terrorism, dismantling global terrorist network
and building democracy in the country. Since the commencement of the war, regional powers have
been involved in the post-war state-building efforts with varying roles and interests. War on Terror
forced regional powers to cooperate in counterterrorism operations, but now when the withdrawal
plan of international forces is announced, a new wave of competition has begun between India and
Pakistan to serve their relative geo-strategic, geo-political and economic interests. The US and Afghan
officials have launched a concerted effort to initiate a dialogue with the Taliban to end the war. A
stalemate in the battlefield between the Taliban on one hand and the Afghan security forces backed by
US-led NATO troops, on the other hand, and President Donald Trump’s quest for quick results in South
Asia strategy has built momentum for a negotiated peace among Afghan and U.S. officials.