India and Russia have become more active in engaging with the Taliban these days. Recently, Indian External Affairs S Jaishankar had a telephonic conversation with Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi.

This dialogue is important for two reasons: 1- This is the first time that India has held talks with the Taliban at the level of foreign minister; 2- It is taking place in the midst of New Delhi’s tensions with Islamabad. According to some reports, Ibrahim Sadr, the Taliban’s deputy interior minister and a figure loyal to the group’s leader, also traveled to New Delhi during the recent war between Pakistan and India.

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban’s deputy prime minister for economics, also led a delegation to the “Russia-Islamic World Summit” held for several days in the city of Kazan, Russia. In addition, it is said that Muttaqi is scheduled to travel to China next week and he already went to Iran today.

As for India, its foreign minister’s phone call with Muttaqi shows that New Delhi understands the importance of engaging with the Taliban. It would understand better if it were at war with Pakistan. If this call had been made in a normal situation, it might not have been of much importance. It can also be said that the Taliban acted in a way that satisfied both sides in the face of the Pakistan-India war, and Jaishankar called Muttaqi for this reason and praised the group’s apparently impartial stance, which led to the condemnation of the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir.

So that Pakistan would not be left out, the Taliban agreed to host a meeting in Kabul, where special representatives from Islamabad and Beijing for Afghanistan were present and met and discussed with the Taliban’s officials. Russia has also become more active than before, with Mullah Baradar’s visit to Kazan and his warm meetings with Russian officials and autonomous republics being a clear example that cannot be taken lightly. Furthermore, Zamir Kabulov, Russia’s special representative for Afghanistan, announced that the Taliban have nominated an ambassador to Moscow, the approval process of which is being reviewed by the host country’s foreign ministry.

These two recent events are the result of the suspension of the Taliban from Russia’s list of “prohibited groups.” Kabulov has also repeatedly said that the suspension of the Taliban from the blacklist leaves Moscow free to interact with the group in all areas. In this sense, Russia has crossed the line of interaction with the Taliban and has reached the edge of “official recognition” of the group; but it does not dare to carry the heavy burden of the regime’s official recognition of the group alone.

Why expand interaction?

It is true that India, in competition with Pakistan, is trying to compromise with the Taliban so that the group does not serve Islamabad’s interests and does not erase New Delhi’s footprint in Afghanistan. Similarly, Russia, in competition with the United States, is trying to win the hearts of the Taliban so that the group does not pave the way for Washington’s renewed presence in Afghanistan.

This is true in its place, but the more effective factor is the forces opposing the Taliban, which are considered too weak in the view of Moscow and New Delhi. If these forces are strong and working with them is not a waste of time, India and Russia, in opposition to Pakistan and the United States, will give ground to the currents opposing this group instead of giving value to the Taliban, and in this way, perhaps a door will open to remove the political blockage in the country.

India and Russia’s engagement with the Taliban is very important because in the past they strongly supported movements that fought against the group. While the engagement of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, etc. with the Taliban is neither new nor causes concern.

UNAMA plan unveiled amid increased engagement between regional governments and the Taliban

In the days when the competition among regional countries to engage with the Taliban has heated up, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has apparently come up with a plan to overcome the current situation in Afghanistan, in which it has also sought the opinions of countries near and far.

The important point is that so far there has been no united and unified opposition from the anti-Taliban forces against this plan, and these forces have not even secretly tried to neutralize it. As usual, UNAMA is pursuing its mission, ignoring the concerns of the opposition to the Taliban, and is trying to implement the plan it has in hand.

Now, given the prevailing desire of countries to engage with the Taliban, it is not unlikely that what UNAMA has put on the table as a plan will be approved, and thus the opposing fronts of this group will be confronted with the action taken and, because of the past and present, will be unable to do anything to defend themselves.

Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), plans to invest an additional $500 billion in the US over the next decade.

Mohammed Al Sowaidi, the Chairman of QIA, helped establish the institution’s presence in the US and explore opportunities there for many years.

Now, as the head of the $524 billion state-backed entity, he is pledging to invest an amount close to the fund’s current size as part of the Gulf country’s significant commitment.

Speaking to Bloomberg, Al Sowaidi stated that the new investments will target areas traditionally favored by the fund, such as artificial intelligence, data centers, and healthcare, while also aligning with President Donald Trump’s agenda of reindustrializing the US.

The $500 billion constitutes nearly half of Qatar’s total commitment of $1.2 trillion made during Trump’s visit this week.

“We are not divesting from other markets; we are increasing our presence in the US,” Al Sowaidi said, adding that the current US policy environment offers a “more promising direction” for long-term capital.

QIA is not the only institution in the Middle East pursuing an aggressive, US-focused investment strategy. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, state institutions in the United Arab Emirates, and the Kuwait Investment Authority are also planning to invest billions of dollars in similar sectors. This could lead to increased competition for the same deals and a higher risk of overpaying for assets.

Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds control $4 trillion in assets. The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority ranks first, followed by the Kuwait and Saudi Arabian investment authorities. QIA is ranked fourth in this list.

Al Sowaidi took over as CEO last year during a significant period for the fund, a time when billions of dollars are expected to flow into the treasury with the expansion of the country’s natural gas projects.

Anticipating new capital inflows, Al Sowaidi plans for the fund to provide capital to large companies, acquire stakes in publicly traded companies, and prioritize larger deals.

This marks a departure from QIA’s recent focus on smaller venture capital deals. Nevertheless, Al Sowaidi said this move is not a “real strategic change or transformation,” but rather an “further evolution” of the fund’s approach to keep pace with rapid global change.

QIA is already the world’s eighth-largest sovereign wealth fund and owns a number of high-profile assets, such as the Harrods department store and the Shard skyscraper in London.

Al Sowaidi joined QIA in 2010 under the leadership of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, who is considered one of the Middle East’s most recognized investors.

Sheikh Hamad was succeeded at QIA by Ahmed Al-Sayed, who helped facilitate many large deals, including Glencore’s acquisition of Xstrata for $29 billion.

Al Sowaidi, on the other hand, spent his early career in America, where he helped establish the US office and eventually became the head of investments for the region.

Holding bachelor’s degrees in finance and statistics from the University of Missouri, Al Sowaidi held positions such as head of private equity funds and head of the QIA Advisory office in New York.

At that time, QIA was known for acquiring stakes in prominent companies like Barclays and Credit Suisse.

Al Sowaidi said the fund typically acquires minority stakes in successful businesses, and transaction size varies greatly depending on the asset class.

“In publicly traded stocks, we can make large investments. In the private equity space, we can do multi-billion dollar transactions, but we can also maintain our agility, especially in sectors like technology or healthcare,” the executive said.

Israeli and Syrian officials discussed the possibility of joining the Abraham Accords, including normalization and a border agreement, during secret talks in Azerbaijan. Türkiye was also involved in the discussions.

It has emerged that Israel has been conducting secret talks with the new Syrian administration led by HTS. According to reports from Channel 12 television, relayed by The Times of Israel, recent contacts involved discussions on Syria’s potential accession to the Abraham Accords and the prospect of normalizing diplomatic relations with Israel. It was reported that the talks were facilitated by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), while the newspaper Haaretz wrote that Qatar was also involved in the process and that discussions had been ongoing for months.

Syria’s interim president, Ahmed al-Shara, confirmed last week that security-related discussions were continuing through mediators but did not comment on possible diplomatic relations.

Channel 12 reported that a meeting was recently held in Azerbaijan, during which the head of the Israeli Army Operations Directorate, Major General Oded Basyuk, met with representatives from the new Syrian administration. According to the report, Turkish officials were also present at the meeting.

Last week, US President Donald Trump invited Syria’s new leader, Ahmed al-Shara, to join the Abraham Accords. Trump reiterated this invitation during his meeting with Shara in Riyadh. Following the meeting, he stated, “I suggested to him that he join the agreement, and he said yes.” However, Trump indicated that they were at the beginning of the process, saying, “There is still much to be done.”

According to Channel 12, Israel greeted Trump’s lifting of sanctions against Syria with cautious optimism. This is because Israel is not disregarding the possibility that this situation could affect the shaping of its northern border and future relations between the two countries.

This situation differs from Israel’s previous stance. According to the report, Israel had previously been hesitant about the idea of interacting with the Shara administration, which it had labeled “terrorist” and which has a history with groups linked to Al-Qaeda. However, the view is now gaining traction that Syria could move out from under Iran’s influence and potentially come under the influence of the US. It is assessed that these developments could also have a positive impact on Israel-Türkiye relations.

According to a Reuters report from February, Israel advocates for Syria to remain decentralized and isolated from the outside world. In this context, Israel continues its diplomatic pressure on the US, particularly with the promise of protecting the Druze community living in the north.

Israel’s military operations in Syria also continue after the overthrow of the Assad regime. Israel continues to bomb former regime military targets across the country and has also deployed ground troops to the Syrian side of the Golan Heights and some points south of Damascus.