Despite past support for Uyghur militants in Xinjiang, the Taliban say they won’t interfere in China’s internal affairs as they continue their advance across Afghanistan
After seizing about one-third of Afghanistan’s districts in this summer’s offensive, the Taliban this week swept through the northeastern Badakhshan province, reaching the mountainous border with China’s Xinjiang region.
Considering the Taliban’s historical connections with Xinjiang’s Uyghur militant groups affiliated with al Qaeda, this advance would have caused alarm to Beijing in the past. These days, however, the Taliban go out of their way to assuage China’s concerns, eager to secure Beijing’s acquiescence to their rule.
“The Taliban want to show China good will,” said Qian Feng, head of research at the National Strategy Institute of Tsinghua University in Beijing. “They hope that China can play a more important role, especially after America pulls out its troops.” With the American military withdrawal nearly complete, China’s clout in the region is growing, in part through Beijing’s strategic relationship with the Taliban’s main backer, Pakistan. China is also becoming increasingly influential in the Central Asian states that border Afghanistan to the north.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
A Generation of Afghan Professionals Flees Ahead of Taliban AdvanceThey are actors, musicians and data analysts: Afghanistan's young professionals fear for their lives and livelihoods as the Taliban advances. 'A lot of dreams, a lot of plans, and now they’re all jeopardized.'
Read more »
Russia-led bloc ready to act if Afghan border unravels, Taliban reassures MoscowThe Russian-led CSTO military bloc said on Thursday it was ready to mobilise its full capacity if the situation on Tajikistan's border with Afghanistan deteriorated as a Taliban delegation in Moscow told Russia it did not pose a threat to the region.
Read more »
Afghan forces take back provincial capital Qala-e-Naw after Taliban assaultWith hundreds of additional troops deployed to the region, Afghanistan's forces retake control of western Badghis province's capital Qala-e-Naw, which the Taliban had stormed into a day earlier
Read more »
Afghan troops flee across border as Taliban make swift gains in alarming offensiveThe rapidly deteriorating security situation has alarmed U.S. officials in Washington and Kabul, Afghanistan's capital, where the government of President Ashraf Ghani is trying to project calm and regroup its forces.
Read more »
Russia-led bloc ready to act if Afghan border unravels, Taliban reassures MoscowThe Russian-led CSTO military bloc said on Thursday it was ready to mobilise its full capacity if the situation on Tajikistan's border with Afghanistan deteriorated as a Taliban delegation in Moscow told Russia it did not pose a threat to the region.
Read more »
Afghan troops flee across border as Taliban make swift gains in alarming offensiveThe rapidly deteriorating security situation has alarmed U.S. officials in Washington and Kabul, Afghanistan's capital, where the government of President Ashraf Ghani is trying to project calm and regroup its forces.
Read more »