After the US troops have withdrawn: China and its interests in Afghanistan

China borders Afghanistan. But Beijing held back for a long time and let the West do it. Now the US troops have withdrawn and the Taliban are striving for power. How do you see that in Beijing?

The border between Afghanistan and China is short – only 76 kilometers, an inaccessible pass at an extreme height. Still, it is important for China. Because up to now the USA and its allies in Afghanistan had made a lot of effort to ensure relatively stable conditions for many years. That is over now.

The tone of Wang Wenbin, a spokesman for the Beijing Foreign Ministry, is accordingly: “The US has violated its responsibilities and obligations by leaving Afghanistan in a hurry. It is leaving behind disorder and turmoil for the Afghan people and the neighboring countries.” Wang alludes to the location of the Afghan-Chinese border: on the Chinese side is Xinjiang, where the Muslim Uyghur minority lives. Beijing justifies its huge internment camps for Uyghurs with a collective suspicion of Islamist terrorism.

Fan Hongda, Middle East Specialist at Shanghai University for International Studies, says: “If the situation in Afghanistan cannot be stabilized, the country will fall into chaos. That would make it a hotbed for international terrorist groups. Of course then it would The security of Afghanistan’s neighbors is at great risk. As we know, Afghanistan borders the Xinjiang region in China. And extremists are very active there. ”

China held back a long time in Afghanistan

According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, 300 Uyghurs had joined the Taliban by 2001. China held back against Afghanistan for a long time and let the West do it. During the civil war with the Taliban in the 1990s, Beijing even withdrew all of its diplomats from the newly opened embassy. Beijing only resumed relations in 2002 and has been in contact with the Afghan government ever since.

And now the Taliban, says Professor Fan Hongda: “Like it or not, the Taliban have become a political power that cannot be ignored in Afghanistan. That is why the nations that are taking part in peace negotiations are trying between the political sides in Afghanistan to convey – these nations are Russia, Iran and China. The Chinese government has a clear definition of the Taliban. China sees them as a political power in Afghanistan, not as a group of terrorists as others call them. ”

China has been negotiating with the Taliban since 2019

Beijing has received various groups of Taliban leaders since 2019. Little is known about the details of the negotiations. But some Taliban gave interviews to the French news agency AFP: They are interested in good connections to all countries. And if other countries want to invest in Afghan natural resources, the Taliban would like to do so.

Afghanistan is economically interesting for China. The value of natural resources is estimated at one trillion dollars. As early as 2008, Chinese consortia secured mining rights for the world’s second largest copper deposits, and in 2011 a 25-year oil drilling contract followed. But nothing has progressed since then. China had decided to wait for more stable political conditions in Afghanistan. Especially since at the time of the protective power of the USA there was reluctance in Kabul to get involved with China. Will that change now?

Taliban as a factor for the New Silk Road?

Professor Fan Hongda continues – his country is not interested in more influence in Asia: “After the American withdrawal, China never saw Afghanistan as a vacuum. And China has no interest in counterbalancing American influence in the Middle East. That only thing that interests China in Afghanistan is that Afghanistan remains stable. ”

But the country is also important for the prestige project of state and party leader Xi Jinping, for the New Silk Road. Because a strategic point here is the economic corridor between China and Pakistan, where there are close ties to the Taliban: If China comes to an agreement with them, Afghanistan could connect the Central Asian states. Under Chinese auspices.