China’s Conundrum in Afghanistan

In this chapter, we discussed the evolution of the diplomatic and economic relations between China and Afghanistan. This chapter addressed the issue of foreign aid and development financing, and the bilateral trade between of these two nations. In addition, our discussion also stressed the growing association between these two countries through their engagements in BRI. Our analysis finds that Sino-Afghan association started to grow after 2002. It is also observed that post-2002 it started taking increasing interest in both economic and diplomatic issues in Afghanistan. China made two huge investments in Afghanistan’s mining and oil exploration sector. It also made several investments in infrastructure development in the country. Post-2014, China further intensified its association with Afghanistan. In July 2014, Beijing appointed the very first special envoy for Afghanistan, Sun Yuxi, a former PRC ambassador to Kabul. It increased its foreign aid to Afghanistan. The bilateral trade between these two countries increased significantly in the post-2014 era. China further strengthened its association with Afghanistan through BRI when the latter joined the initiative in 2016. A few critical projects were launched under the ambit of BRI in Afghanistan which include railways connectivity and digital connectivity plans.