Congress leader Jairam Ramesh has criticised the Modi government over reports that India had shut down its only overseas military facility — the Ayni airbase in Tajikistan — calling it a “setback for strategic diplomacy.”
In a post on X, Ramesh recalled that India had established the Ayni airbase in the early 2000s and later expanded its infrastructure with ambitious plans to strengthen its presence there due to the site’s “extraordinary location.” However, he added that around four years ago, India was asked to “gradually withdraw,” and it now appeared that the base had been completely closed.
“This is, without doubt, yet another setback for our strategic diplomacy,” Ramesh remarked, taking aim at what he described as the Modi government’s failure to sustain critical foreign policy assets.
Located about 10 kilometres from Tajikistan’s capital, Dushanbe, the Ayni airbase was widely regarded as a vital outpost for India’s regional ambitions, giving it a rare strategic reach into Central Asia and proximity to Afghanistan. It remained India’s only operational overseas airbase.
The Ayni base had served multiple strategic roles, including supporting the former Northern Alliance in Afghanistan and later being used in 2021 to evacuate Indian nationals following the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul.
The closure of the Ayni airbase underscores India’s waning strategic depth in Central Asia at a time when regional geopolitics is being reshaped by China’s Belt and Road Initiative and Russia’s entrenched military presence. The loss of this facility not only limits India’s ability to project power westward but also reduces its operational leverage in crises involving Afghanistan or the broader Eurasian corridor. Analysts say the development highlights a broader diplomatic drift, where India’s strategic partnerships have not translated into sustained influence or infrastructure footholds — raising questions about New Delhi’s long-term vision for Central Asian engagement.
