There is "understandable anxiety" in India about post-2014 Afghanistan when the US withdraws its troops from the war-torn country, Indian- American diplomat Nisha Desai Biswal told US lawmakers today.
"There is understandable anxiety in India and across the region about what this transition will bring. But we are in a very close dialogue with the Indians," Biswal told members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee during her confirmation hearing for the post of Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia.
Noting that the US is having a "very close dialogue" with India, Biswal said in the capacity of her current position in USAID, she attended some of the trilateral conversations between the US, Afghanistan and India about the transition, about their prospects and priorities for the coming 18 months.
"India has played an important role in Afghanistan's economic development and continues to do so. We will continue to work very closely with our Indian counterparts and with the Afghan government on what an appropriate and stabilizing role that India can play in the region," she said.
Biswal said there is convergence of interest between India and Pakistan that neither of them want to see an insecure and unstable Afghanistan.
"I think that the opportunity that we have before us is to engage both countries on that particular interest. Ultimately, the efforts for Afghanistan's political transition and reconciliation will be Afghan-led. It will be for the Afghans to determine how they will engage with other partners in the region. We are certainly supportive of working with all of the interested parties towards that," she said.
"The United States and India and Afghanistan participate in a trilateral dialogue where there is an opportunity to both share information and discuss concerns and priorities and that is something that if confirmed, I will continue to engage in robustly," Biswal said.
"It allows the Indians to have greater visibility into where the US-Afghanistan relationship, how the transition is unfolding and for the United States and for Afghanistan to have an understanding of India's concerns and interests in the region," she said.
"In the Istanbul process, in the heart of Asia, India does chair the confidence-building measures with respect to the Afghan economy, with trade and with economic and commerce," she added.
