NEW DELHI -- India has long seen a reconstruction role for itself in Afghanistan, despite its lack of direct military involvement in the country. Its interests there are obvious: A strong Kabul that keeps the Taliban -- and by extension al-Qaida -- in check also ensures that jihadi forces in Pakistan do not use Afghanistan as a backyard assembly line for militants who can then be turned against India, and the rest of the world.
But New Delhi is not finding its Afghan sojourn easy.
Earlier this month, the Indian embassy in Kabul was attacked for the second time in 15 months. Last July, 58 people, including two diplomats, died and nearly 150 were injured in the deadliest suicide bombing since the fall of the Taliban in 2001.