Situating Workable Response Begins...

Since the beginning of recorded history, Afghanistan has always found

itself at the axis of imperial ambitions, from the world’s first

transcontinental superpower, the Persian Empire, to its latest, the United

States. Regarded as the coveted prize of empires and a source of

indigenous warrior kingdoms, Afghanistan has devolved through the

modern era from the status of a buffer state, then a Cold War battlefield,

and finally to a hideout of the so-called Islamic terrorist outfits.

The mountains of Afghanistan are like those audiences of Roman colosseums

witnessing endless manoeuvres of expansionist Persians, exploring

Greeks, brave-heart Mauryans, notorious Huns, plundering Mongols,

ruthless Mughals, colonialist British, interfering Soviets, and scheming

Americans. Afghanistan has been subjected to countless invasions and

incursions throughout its history, leading to an indelible imprint on its

territorial identity and marked social and demographic transformation.

This has been largely a result of its geographic location of being situated at

the “crossroads of empires.” Apart from its geo-political location, the

rugged topography with its lack of economic development, isolates it

internationally and magnify the distance between the people and the

state. Afghanistan’s population is also divided by deep and multifaceted

cleavages along ethnic, linguistic, tribal, racial, and also sectarian lines.

Apart from these factors, Afghanistan’s location among meddlesome

neighbours and the Cold War rivalry have all combined to help sustain

Afghanistan as a ‘weak state’, and sometimes to the extent of a ‘collapsed state’.

To be continued....