China has shown both inside and outside the Islamist Taliban and honeymooners who have acquired Afghanistan. When the Taliban were certain to take control of the whole country, China was ready to approve the administration. The US withdrawal from Afghanistan and the Taliban's seizure of power, is this a Chinese victory in the US-China conflict? However, China did not suddenly put its shoulders on the Taliban to reveal the nose of the conflicting United States. (Photo quoted  from CNN’s image)

The relationship between China and the Islamist forces in Afghanistan dates back to the era of the Sino-Soviet conflict. When the Soviet Union began its invasion of Afghan at the end of 1979, China, along with the United States and Gulf nations, began supporting Islamist guerrillas called the "Mujahideen." The Chinese Communist Party was ideologically the opposite of the Islamists, but it became an alliance if it could stop the Soviet Union, which was in conflict. We need to recognize that today's honeymoon has such a historical background.

What is the reason for China to move to the Taliban? It is also pointed out that China’s aiming for the huge underground resources that sleep in Afghanistan. After all, the main purpose will be to incorporate it into China's "One Belt, One Road" economic and trade zone initiative for China, as in neighboring Central Asia. China is enthusiastic about building ports and rail networks in Pakistan and other countries.

Afghanistan is a convenient route for a "One Belt, One Road" strategy, adjacent to Central Asia and connecting to Iran's sea exit and Chabahar port. Since the time of the previous administration, "One Belt, One Road" projects such as railway construction have already been promoted, and China hopes to prevent the cancellation of such a huge plan and further expand the plan by embracing the Taliban. Chinese merchants are also participating there, and it seems that they are trying to make a full-scale entry in line with the withdrawal of Afghanistan from the United States and the seizure of the Taliban.

What about safety concerns about China and the Chinese? After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the United States suffered from terrorist acts of its own support, but China, which had not intervened deeply, was less plagued by terrorism than Western countries.

Will China also suffer from terrorism? According to an article in the Asahi Shimbun, even after the Taliban seized power, the safety situation of Chinese residents in the area did not seem to have changed significantly.

It seems to be safer than in Pakistan such as Balochistan, where there is a danger of attack just because it looks similar to the Chinese. The Taliban have been treated as an Islamic extremist, and there are concerns that terrorism may occur frequently in China in collaboration with the Uighur forces in China. On the other hand, the opposite is also pointed out. Uighurs living in Afghanistan are afraid of the Pashtun-dominated Taliban's seizure of power and China's growing influence.

Since 9.11 (September 11 terrorist attacks in the US), the Taliban has invited the invasion of the U.S. military by hiding Bin Laden, and it is said that it is no longer disciplined to support terrorist organizations, so it is doubtful whether it will support the Uighur forces. Given that Pakistan is helping the government to crack down on minorities, it is possible that China and the Taliban will collude in cracking down on minorities.

When it comes to that, the minority will become hostile to China. If that happens, the annoying situation of killing Chinese people in Pakistan and attacking Chinese facilities will be reproduced in Afghanistan.

Afghanistan, which has been called the "graveyard of the empire", has been forced to withdraw by inviting the intervention of the British Empire, the Soviet Union, and now the United States and superpowers. These countries were able to retreat smoothly due to their low economic involvement. On the other hand, China is already building economic interdependence and cannot easily withdraw. Trends will be closely watched as to whether Afghanistan will become the "graveyard of the Chinese Empire."

Roni　Namo

Ethnic writer living in Tokyo. Since he encountered the Kurdish problem while attending college, he has continued to cover and analyze political movements of ethnic minorities, mainly Kurds. He was taught Kurdish (Kurdish) by Kurds and is probably the only Japanese who can use Kurdish. He has completed the translation of a Japanese novel into Kurdish (unpublished). Currently focusing on learning Arabic. He has also learned Persian and Turkish. He is training to become a multilingual journalist.