India-Pakistan tensions disrupt Afghanistan’s trade
Recent India-Pakistan tensions have severely disrupted Afghanistan’s trade, stranding containers and causing major financial losses for Afghan exporters.
Recent tensions between India and Pakistan have once again impacted Afghanistan’s fragile economy, creating serious challenges for the country’s most lucrative export market.
The Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Investment (ACCI) has announced that over 2,000 containers belonging to Afghan traders are stranded at the Wagah and Karachi ports due to halted trade between India and Pakistan.
Khan Jan Alokozai, a board member of ACCI, told the state-run National Television under the interim administration that Pakistan is not allowing the transit of Indian goods through its territory to Afghanistan.
This action comes in response to India’s sanctions and the closure of the Wagah border. Wagah, the shortest and most cost-effective trade route for Afghanistan’s exports to India, plays a vital role in the country’s $500 million annual dry fruit trade with India.
Alokozai also stated that around 1,500 to 2,000 containers carrying Indian goods—including food, sugar, legumes, and pharmaceuticals—are stuck at Karachi port and other transit routes such as Torkham and Chaman.
The Chamber of Commerce reports that this blockade is causing Afghan traders to incur hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses daily.
Khalid Ahmad Rahmani, spokesperson for Afghanistan’s Dried Fruit Exporters Union, confirmed that about 150 trucks loaded with transit goods remain stranded at the Wagah border. He warned that the continued halt could lead to a sharp decline in Afghanistan’s dry fruit exports to India.
The current tensions escalated following a deadly attack on tourists in the Pahalgam region of Indian-administered Kashmir in April 2025.
India blamed Pakistan for supporting the perpetrators of the attack and responded with retaliatory actions including suspending the Indus Waters Treaty, and closing both its airspace and the Wagah port to Pakistan.
In retaliation, Pakistan shut its airspace to Indian flights and closed the Wagah border, with its National Security Committee calling India’s moves “acts of war” and threatening a military response.
These developments have not only pushed India-Pakistan relations to a breaking point but have also severely impacted third-party trade—especially that of landlocked Afghanistan.
Noor Ahmad Noor, Director General of Political Affairs at Afghanistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated during a meeting in Kabul that the Wagah closure has caused significant damage to Afghanistan’s trade sector and created serious logistical challenges.
Meanwhile, some Taliban officials have mentioned alternative trade routes. Abdul Salam Jawad Akhundzada, spokesperson for the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, stated that if the Wagah port remains closed, Afghanistan could continue trade with India through Iran’s Chabahar port.
Although this route is longer and more expensive, it is being considered as a potential alternative to reduce reliance on Pakistan.
The regional power struggle between India and Pakistan continues to exert collateral damage on Afghanistan’s economy, particularly its export-dependent agricultural sector. As land routes remain blocked, Afghan traders are seeking alternative corridors, despite higher costs.
The situation underscores Afghanistan’s vulnerability as a landlocked nation dependent on neighboring countries’ political stability. Sustainable trade solutions, regional cooperation, and diversified access to ports are now more crucial than ever for the country’s economic survival.
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