Future Of 43 Afghans Graduating From India's Ace Military School Hangs In Balance With Taliban At The Helm

A batch of Forty-three Afghanistan cadets will be graduating with their Indian mates in the upcoming passing out parade (POP) at India's premier military school.

According to a Times Of India report, the batch is most likely to be the last one at the Indian Military Academy as the Afghan National Army ceased to exist ever since the Taliban took over the country last year.

India had provided Afghan security forces with training and military equipment before the Taliban took over. It was also one of the largest providers of development aid to Afghanistan.

An IMA official who wished to remain anonymous told the publication that "after the regime change in the country, no new cadets came to IMA for training."

"The remaining cadets who completed their training at the academy will complete their course this week."

The report noted that the future of these cadets seems to hang in the balance as the institute is yet to receive official communication from "concerned, relevant authorities." There were 83 Afghan cadets at IMA when the Taliban took hold of Afghanistan last year. Out of these, 40 graduated in December last year, and the remaining 43 will be graduating in the parade on June 11.

"As of now, we have received no official communication from Afghan or Indian authorities about these cadets. But we are sure that those concerned will take appropriate action to ensure their safety and security," the official said.

In an interview with News18, the defense minister and son of Taliban founder, Mullah Yaqoob expressed his willingness to send Afghan army personnel to India for military training, saying we "don't have any issue with it."

Last week, India also sent a team of officials to initiate diplomatic ties with the acting foreign minister of Afghanistan for the first time since they took over Afghanistan in 2021.

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