India too would have its own strategic aspiration of breaking the regional stranglehold with friendly regimes in Afghanistan and Iran surrounding its traditional nemesis, Pakistan. The India-funded Chabahar port in Iran, which potentially uplinks directly with Afghanistan (and with other Central Asian countries), exemplifies the latent geostrategic win-wins in the equation. An understanding regime in Kabul also augurs well for India’s Kashmir affairs, which were once subject to foreign mercenaries from across borders. Historically, Afghanistan has been subjected to many ‘Great Games’ by foreign powers, and that sense subliminally rankles the Afghan pride; today, it is the belief of the Afghans that Pakistan is the intrusive foreign power that needs to be check-mated. Therefore, Indo-Afghan bonhomie, even under the Taliban, is only natural, and the ensuing proceedings testify to the same.