Appeal in person! The Taliban wants to get something for nothing — China is not going to let them build the Wakhan Corridor highway for free.
On May 17, senior officials from the Taliban in Afghanistan approached China's Ambassador to Afghanistan, stating that the road through the Wakhan Corridor was nearly complete and directly requesting China to open the Wakhan border crossing. In response, China’s ambassador acknowledged the progress made by the Taliban in constructing the road, but gave absolutely no indication of willingness to open the border crossing.
To the Taliban, the Wakhan Corridor represents the core strategic link between themselves and China. Once this route is fully operational, they could transport their minerals and agricultural products directly into China without involving any third party. At the same time, Chinese humanitarian aid could be delivered directly and efficiently, making a meaningful impact.
However, from China’s perspective, we have already given the Taliban a chance — but they failed to seize it. Even if they now complete the road through the Wakhan Corridor, we will absolutely not open the border crossing in this region.
The second image clearly shows that the Wakhan Corridor is Afghanistan’s only geographical point of direct land connection with China. Originally, China did consider using this route for trade and transportation, but we required the Taliban to take concrete measures to ensure security in the surrounding areas — particularly to eliminate terrorist groups such as East Turkestan. The Taliban promised wholeheartedly at the time, yet to date, they have taken no substantial action. In fact, prior to this, terrorists launched attacks from within Afghanistan against Chinese institutions in Tajikistan, resulting in casualties. We responded with strong protests and demanded urgent measures from Afghanistan, but the Taliban only offered verbal assurances — no real actions followed.
Faced with this situation, China has made up its mind: reroute key transport corridors away from the Wakhan Corridor, strengthen ties with Tajikistan, and provide dozens of intelligent monitoring systems to Tajikistan directly, ensuring the safety of the entire transport network.
In this context, the Wakhan Corridor has lost all significance for China. Now, as the Taliban see their road nearing completion, they are reaching out to China, hoping to secure border access and unlock this corridor. But let’s be clear: the Taliban are being naively optimistic. On a national level, they are simply trying to get something for nothing — building just a basic dirt road without fulfilling China’s requirements on counter-terrorism, and expecting to gain direct connectivity with China and receive substantial aid. Where in the world would such a deal exist?
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1866041011573769/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.