Afghanistan: Tough terrain, tough test
A land like Afghanistan that has been home to numerous forces previously, drove by Alexander the Incomparable.
Despite being such an incredible force, this force was not crushed anyplace on the planet and this force proceeded to win triumphs.
Alexander the Incomparable’s military-experienced opposition from the Aspasui and Asakin clans during their mission in the Kabul Valley.
The Aspasui and Asakin clans live in the Peshawar Valley in present-day eastern Afghanistan and present-day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.
A land like Afghanistan that doesn’t meet any ocean is known as a land encompassed by mountains.
What’s more, in a land encompassed by mountains, battling and winning force is just about as troublesome as ascending the Himalayan K-2 in an incredibly chilly climate.
Afghanistan became a socialist state for the first time in the late 1970s. The place that is known for Afghanistan turned into a cemetery for a force like the (former) Soviet Union.
Political dissidents on Afghan soil crushed the Soviet Union with the assistance of the US and the Soviet Union self-destructed.
After February 1986, Gorbachev recognized that there was no requirement for Soviet military activity in Afghanistan, and portrayed his impressions that Afghanistan had become a bleeding wound.
The US started testing a similar bleeding wound after the 9/11 attacks. After a long conflict of 20 years, the US gave a date for the withdrawal of troops.
The CIA as of late gave a dystopian expression of remorse following the obliteration of new proof of Osama Bin Ladin inclusion in the 9/11 attacks.
The expression of remorse didn’t ensnare any American Leader, nor did it convict any American General.
The US gave a date of military withdrawal when the world economy, including the US, was hit by Coronavirus.
A nation like the US, which may now perceive that Afghanistan will remain a bleeding wound. The wound also wounded a force like the United States.
The same weapon that the US utilized against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan, the same weapon that the US needed to destroy, however, fizzled.
The US crushed the Soviet Union in Afghanistan with the assistance of the Taliban, however, the inquiry emerges concerning which force crushed the lone superpower on the planet in Afghanistan by having Uni-Polar status? History has shown that whenever guerrilla warfare was fought anywhere, even the greatest power was defeated, be it the army of Alexander the Great, the Soviet Union or the United States.
The question arises, what will the mainland government of Afghanistan look like after the US departure? Will there be an Al-Qaeda government there? The past tells us that land like Afghanistan never recognizes any external force.
International law tells us that conflict always comes to the table when both parties recognize each other as ‘parties’. The United States recognized Al-Qaeda as its adversary and joined it in negotiation.
Now if the people of Afghanistan are allowed to decide that they should democratically decide the future of Afghanistan and bring the government to power with the help of the vote.
So will the United States recognize a government that will come into being democratically, whether it is govt of Al-Qaeda or one of Afghanistan’s most popular political parties?
Given the ongoing situation, it is not wrong to say that after the departure of the United States, the atmosphere of central power on the Afghan mainland will become vacant, due to which there is a fear of civil war in Afghanistan and it will a country like Pakistan.
Due to the civil war, the resettlement of refugees in Pakistan may increase again, which Pakistan cannot afford.
The second biggest influence will be the mobilization of geopolitical forces. China, Russia’s intentions, and the use of Central Asian landlocked countries natural resources and access to the Arabian Peninsula will only be possible if the peace prevails in Afghanistan.
Afghanistan has the largest border sharing with Pakistan. Pakistan has been the most important Non-NATO ally of the United States in the Afghan war.
But now that the CPEC is in the final stages of completion, Pakistan also has to deal with the situation after the US withdrawal in Afghanistan.
Pakistan will have to discuss a number of important issues with Afghanistan, including its border disputes.
Afghanistan’s accession to the CPEC is welcome, but before that, the flag of peace must be waved in Afghanistan, for which Pakistan will be the biggest beneficiary.
— The writer is an Aspiring Scholar of Politics and IR based in Lahore.
