The Durand Line Dispute: Afghanistan's Unrecognized Border

The Durand Line is a highly contested border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Durand Line was established in 1893 as the border between British India and the Emirate of Afghanistan, marking their respective spheres of influence. The Durand Line cuts through the Pashtun tribal areas, leaving villages, families, and land divided between the two spheres of influence. Afghanistan has never recognised the Durand Line as a legitimate border, and the issue has been a source of tension and conflict between the two countries for decades. The Durand Line has been described as arbitrary and nonsensical by many Afghans, and it is viewed as an existential issue for Pakistan. Attempts by Pakistan to establish fences and border posts along the disputed border have been met with resistance and hostility from Afghanistan. The Durand Line continues to be a major bone of contention between the two countries, with no resolution in sight.

The Durand Line was established in 1893 as the border between British India and the Emirate of Afghanistan

The Durand Line was established to fix the limit of their respective spheres of influence and improve diplomatic relations and trade. The British considered Afghanistan to be an independent state at the time, although they controlled its foreign affairs and diplomatic relations. The Durand Line Agreement was only a page long, and the Durand Line itself was defined by a joint Afghan-British survey between 1894 and 1896.

The Durand Line stretches for about 1,600 miles (2,600 km) between Afghanistan and Pakistan, culminating at its western end at the border with Iran and at its eastern end at the border with China. It runs through mountainous terrain and remains largely unpoliced. The line cuts through Pashtun tribal areas, leaving villages, families, and land divided between the two "spheres of influence". It also put the strategic Khyber Pass on the British side.

The Durand Line has been a source of tension and conflict between Afghanistan and Pakistan, as it divided the Pashtun tribal lands in two. Afghanistan has never recognised the Durand Line as its international border with Pakistan, and the issue has complicated the relationship between the two countries. The Durand Line has also been a point of contention between the Taliban and Pakistan, with the Taliban rejecting the Durand Line and opposing the fence erected by Pakistan along the border.

Afghanistan has never recognised the Durand Line as an international border

Afghanistan has long refused to accept the Durand Line as a legitimate border, declaring it and the agreements defining it as void because they were imposed by the British. When Pakistan joined the United Nations in 1947, Afghanistan was the only member nation to vote against its membership. Afghanistan has maintained that the Durand Line is void, regardless of which government has been in power.

The Durand Line remains a contentious issue between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Pakistan views the Durand Line as critical to its survival as a Punjabi-dominated Sunni country, while many Afghans see it as an arbitrary and nonsensical reflection of geography, history, and culture. Attempts by Pakistan to establish fences and border posts along the disputed border have been met with resistance from Afghanistan, leading to periodic skirmishes and tensions between the two countries' security personnel.

The Durand Line has also been a source of tension between the Taliban and Pakistan. When the Taliban seized power in Kabul for the first time, they rejected the Durand Line and fostered Pashtun nationalism, which had a significant impact on Pakistani Pashtuns. The Taliban's opposition to the Durand Line has continued during their current rule, with a Taliban spokesman stating that the Afghan government would announce its position on the issue and that the fencing had "divided families".

The Durand Line cuts through Pashtun tribal areas, leaving villages, families, and land divided

The Durand Line, established in 1893, cuts through the Pashtun tribal areas, leaving villages, families, and land divided between the two "spheres of influence". The Durand Line stretches from the border with China to Afghanistan's border with Iran, covering a distance of 2,430 kilometres. It starts in the snow-capped mountains in the north, passes through the fertile mid-territories, and leads to the dry and barren south areas.

The Durand Line was established as the international border between the Emirate of Afghanistan and the Indian Empire by Mortimer Durand, a British diplomat of the Indian Civil Service, and Abdur Rahman Khan, the Emir of Afghanistan. The Durand Line Agreement was signed on November 12, 1893, in Kabul, Afghanistan. The Durand Line has served as the official border between the two nations for more than one hundred years, but it has caused controversy for the people who live there.

The Durand Line divided the Pashtun tribal lands in two, setting the region up for future tensions due to tribal allegiances spanning both sides of the border. It also gave Balochistan to British India and defined the Wakhan Corridor, a thin strip of land running to the Chinese border (and separating present-day Tajikistan from the northern portion of Kashmir) as a buffer zone between the Russian and British empires. The Durand Line put the strategic Khyber Pass on the British side.

The Durand Line has been described as a "line of hatred", arbitrary, illogical, cruel, and a trick played on the Pashtuns. Some historians believe it was a ploy to divide the Pashtuns so that the British could keep control over them easily. The Durand Line has never been recognised by Afghanistan, which has always refused to recognise it as an international border.

Pakistan has attempted to establish fences and border posts along the Durand Line, which Afghanistan has resisted

Pakistan has been attempting to establish fences and border posts along the Durand Line since 2005. The Durand Line is a 2,670-kilometre (1,622-mile) international border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. It was established in 1893 as the international border between the Emirate of Afghanistan and the Indian Empire.

In 2005, Pakistan stated its plans to build a 2,400-kilometre (1,500-mile) fence along the border to prevent insurgents and drug smugglers from slipping between the two countries. The initial plans were backed by the United States. However, these plans were not fully implemented due to a lack of funds.

In 2017, Pakistan renewed its efforts to fortify the border by constructing fences and border posts. This was met with resistance from Afghanistan, which does not recognise the Durand Line as a legitimate border. The fencing has divided families and communities, and Afghanistan argues that it will make the border permanent. The Durand Line cuts through the Pashtun tribal lands, and Afghanistan has long demanded the return of these Pashtun territories.

The attempts to establish border fences and posts have resulted in periodic skirmishes and violent clashes between Pakistani and Afghan security personnel, aggravating the already tense relationship between the two countries. In 2017, violent clashes near the Chaman border post left at least 13 people dead and more than 80 wounded, most of whom were Pakistani.

The Durand Line remains a matter of contention between Afghanistan and Pakistan, with no resolution in sight

The Durand Line, a legacy of the 19th-century geopolitical conflict between the Russian and British empires, continues to be a source of tension between Afghanistan and Pakistan. The line, established in 1893, demarcates the border between the two countries and has been a point of contention for decades, with Afghanistan refusing to recognise it as a legitimate international border.

The Durand Line was established through an agreement between Sir Henry Mortimer Durand, a British civil servant, and Amir Abdur Rahman, the then Afghan ruler. The agreement demarcated the "spheres of influence" of British India and Afghanistan along their shared frontier. However, the line cut through Pashtun tribal areas, dividing villages, families, and land between the two sides. This has been a major source of resentment among Pashtuns, who see the line as arbitrary and nonsensical, dividing their communities and separating them from their ancestral lands.

Afghanistan has consistently rejected the legitimacy of the Durand Line and has refused to recognise it as the official border with Pakistan. This rejection has persisted through different Afghan governments, including the Taliban regime. When the Taliban seized power in Kabul, they rejected the Durand Line and fostered Pashtun nationalism, which had a significant impact on Pakistani Pashtuns. Afghanistan's refusal to recognise the Durand Line has been a constant source of tension and distrust in its relations with Pakistan.

Pakistan, on the other hand, considers the Durand Line critical to its survival as a Punjabi-dominated Sunni country. It views the border as an existential issue and has attempted to establish fences and border posts along it to exert control. These actions have been met with stiff resistance from Afghanistan and have led to periodic skirmishes and violent clashes between Pakistani and Afghan security forces. The fencing of the border has been a particularly contentious issue, with Afghans and Pashtuns on both sides seeing it as an attempt by Pakistan to permanently divide their communities.

The dispute over the Durand Line has persisted despite changing geopolitical contexts. During the Cold War, the larger US-Soviet rivalry overshadowed the Afghan-Pakistani dispute, preventing a resolution. More recently, Pakistan's support for the Taliban and its attempts to exert influence in Afghanistan have further complicated the situation. Pakistan's wholehearted involvement in the Afghan jihad and its backing of the Taliban have had unintended consequences, including the rise of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, whose terrorist attacks have shaken the country.

With no Afghan government, including the present one, recognising the legitimacy of the Durand Line, and with Pakistan insisting on its validity as the official border, the dispute remains unresolved. The disagreement over the border continues to poison the relationship between the two countries, and there seems to be no resolution in sight. The Durand Line remains a contentious issue that haunts the neighbourly relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan, with periodic tensions and skirmishes along the disputed border.

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