New Delhi, Oct. 10 -- There are many occasions when even rivals agree to unite behind a common issue. It is usually a shared threat or mutual interest that yields a 'consensus among enemies.' The White House demand that the Taliban government of Afghanistan let the US re-establish its presence at Bagram has become a rallying call for many geopolitical actors in the region.

This week, traditional rivals India and Pakistan-apart from Afghanistan, China, Iran, Russia and four Central Asian nations-jointly expressed opposition to US control of that airbase (without naming it). That a foreign power, especially a non-Asian military force, should acquire a launchpad for counterterror operations was taken as a new risk to the region's fragile ge...