External Dynamics in China's Afghan Policy Behavior

As the US leaves Afghanistan, China rushes to fill the void. The transformation in China’s foreign policy behavior towards Afghanistan is somewhat an aberration from historical trends. Now, growing bilateral relations between China and Afghanistan are making policy experts surprised to what is behind this recent diplomatic push up of China. The paper analyses three external factors shaping China’s Afghanistan approach: (1) withdrawal of the US-led western forces from Afghanistan forcing China to anticipate inimical forces will take the lead in Afghanistan, (2) Indian role and its long-lasting effects on Chinese interests in Afghanistan, (3) how regional countries around Afghanistan view the post-withdrawal situation and its policy implications for China. The research concludes that these external determinants, less or more, have far-reaching implications for China’s foreign policy towards Afghanistan.