Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has travelled to India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. It seems that it is his visit to Kabul and his meetings with Afghanistan’s acting Prime Minister Hasan Akhund and Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi that merit attention. Even while he was on the Pakistan leg of the series of visits, Wang mooted that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor which runs parallel to the Pakistan-Afghanistan border should include Afghanistan as well because of the threat of terrorism from the Islamist groups in the border region.
While in Kabul, he had more specific concerns which focused on the 46-mile border between Afghanistan and China, especially with the Chinese province of Xinjiang. In Xinjiang China is facing the problem of Uighur Muslim rebels, and China does not want any movement of the rebels on the border coming into China from Afghanistan.
Beijing is also concerned about the activities of the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM). Afghanistan’s acting Prime Minister Akhund had assured Wang that there would not be any attack on China from Afghan territory. He promised that Afghanistan would “never allow any force to use Afghan territory to threaten China.”
In a statement issued by Afghanistan, Akhund said, “China and Afghanistan are two strong and long-standing friends. We appreciate China’s constructive stance, support and cooperation regarding Afghanistan on the international stage." Interestingly, China is yet to recognize the Taliban regime.
It is not an isolated instance. There has been no international recognition of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan after the peremptory American exit in August 2021. This has not prevented China from taking into account the importance of Afghanistan and the Taliban on issues of security with regard to China, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Wang spoke at length about the importance of Afghanistan. He said, “Historically, imperialists, colonialists and hegemonists have all attempted to seize Afghanistan, yet each ultimately ended in failure. Such schemes will not succeed in the future either. China has always advocated for the equality of all nations, regardless of their size...Every nation, including Afghanistan, has the right to achieve development and revitalization.”
There is indeed a vacuum in terms of Afghanistan’s relations with other countries. The Taliban have been at loggerheads with its eastern neighbour Pakistan and western neighbour Iran. Americans and Russians are in the once-bitten-twice-shy mode. The armies of the both countries tried to occupy Afghanistan, the Russians for a decade from the late 1970s to late 1980s, and the Americans from 2001 to 2021. And the armies of the two countries left with a bloody nose. China seems to understand the internal dynamics of Afghanistan. So, it is playing a cautious game. China wants to build relations with Afghanistan and influence its policies from the outside.
China has adopted a pragmatic approach in dealing with the Taliban in Afghanistan. Afghanistan is in need of foreign aid, and no country is coming forward to offer it. China is quite willing to enter into economic cooperation with the Taliban, and in doing so ensure security stability in the volatile region at the northern borders with the Central Asian republics, including that of China. Ignoring the Taliban and isolating Afghanistan is not clever policy.
China recognizes the fine lines of division which have to be maintained and nurtured. Afghanistan’s border with China is indeed very small, but it was not something that should be forgotten. Chinese policymakers are acutely aware of the importance of small things in bilateral relations. China would be gaining much economically from the mining resources of Afghanistan. China is going to step up its technological and economic aid to Afghanistan, which is of greater value than mere diplomatic recognition.