Mahendra Ved is a New Delhi-based writer and columnist. He co-authored with Sreedhar, Afghan Turmoil: Changing Equations (Himalayan Books, 1998) and Afghan Buzkashi: Great Game and Gamesmen (Wordsmiths, 2000, 2 volumes).
Responding to Dr. Vishal Chandra's article ‘India in the Afghan Maze: Search for Options’ allows me the opportunity to update and improve upon the suggestions I had made in my commentary ‘Af-Pak and India's Options in Afghanistan’ (Strategic Analysis, 34(5), 2010, pp. 683–689).
By offering to augment its $1.3 billion assistance to Afghanistan, India has sent out a clear signal that it remains a player in the beleaguered nation's reconstruction process. India will not be deterred by the efforts of Pakistan and a section of the world community to isolate it. The offer was made during President Hamid Karzai's brief visit to New Delhi, on April 26–27, 2010. The timing was significant. Karzai was flying further east to Thimphu, Bhutan, to attend the 16th summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). The Indian prime minister, Dr.
