Daily Times

After the defeat of the Soviet Union in Afghanistan, a government, as a result of the Geneva Agreement, was formed on April 14, 1988. Yet, due to the worst civil wars, the Afghan Taliban soon gained power and established a conservative hardline government. After the 9/11 incident, the United States started the war against Afghanistan. Two decades later, on February 29, 2020, it completed its military withdrawal under the Doha Agreement. Contrary to the expectations of the international community, the Afghan Taliban regained control of Afghanistan on August 31, 2021, and they are tougher than before. No resistance was encountered. Fears of a civil war were expressed, but no opposing faction could stand in front of the Islamic Emirate, which forced a world power like the United States to withdraw from Afghanistan. What is noteworthy here is that after the occupation of the Soviet Union and subsequent civil war, millions of refugees sought refuge in neighbouring countries. The Afghan Taliban spent a period of violence with the United States. During this time, a large number of Afghan refugees continued to migrate. When the US completely withdrew from Afghanistan, it followed a policy of expelling a large number of Afghans from the country. According to the UNHCR, 1.5 million Afghan refugees went to Pakistan in 2020, while 778 thousand to Iran, 181 thousand to Germany, 129 thousand to Turkey, 46 thousand six hundred France,41 thousand to Greece, 31 thousand three hundred to Sweden, 15 thousand and four hundred to Switzerland, 15 thousand and one hundred to India, 13 thousand and four hundred in Italy, 12 thousand and six hundred in Great Britain, 12 thousand and four hundred in Australia, eight thousand and nine hundred in Belgium. In Indonesia, 7,600 Afghan refugees received asylum. According to UNHCR, 2.6 million Afghan refugees are legally registered worldwide, of which 2.2 million Afghans are registered only in Pakistan and Iran (the number of illegal refugees is also in the millions), while 3.5 million people are IDPs in Afghanistan. . The NATO bloc indicated a small number of its facilitators, Afghans, to resettle in their countries under a strict policy, but this promise could not be fully implemented. Britain had indicated it would accept about 20,000 Afghan refugees, but initially adopted a policy to resettle only 5,000 Afghan refugees and refused to say whether it would accept the remaining 15,000. Apart from this, Germany also expressed its willingness to accept Afghan refugees. This number was said to be a maximum of 10 thousand but it was not fully implemented either. About 1500 Afghan refugees have entered Uzbekistan and live in tents after the Afghan Taliban took over Kabul. The Afghan Taliban are not advocating the evacuation of skilled and educated citizens but because of their policies, the skilled and educated are protected.

According to the UNHCR, 1.5 million Afghan refugees went to Pakistan in 2020.

The United States had appealed to the neighbouring countries to bear the burden in the crisis of Afghan refugees and also remembered China as a neighbour of Afghanistan. The media asked Chinese spokesperson Hua Chenying whether China was ready to accept Afghan refugees. The most basic thing is that the international community should help the Afghan factions to talk and negotiate so that Afghanistan will no longer have conflicts and wars, which will ensure that there will be no more refugees. In addition, the Afghan Taliban government was forced to stop the war and “stabilize” the population. A comprehensive political framework needs to be put in place to achieve a smooth transition of power while allowing Pakistan and Iran to express their reservations about taking on a bigger burden. However, Afghan refugees have not entered China, a country bordering Afghanistan, China’s border with Afghanistan is the Wakhan Corridor, the area of this corridor is about 400 km, which is east-west and 100 km in China. In its geographical location, its environment is very harsh and the corridor is very narrow. A part of this corridor is often covered by snowy mountains and is inaccessible. According to statistics, only two months of the year can be spent under the snowy mountain cover. Due to its harsh natural environment, there is no concrete use of this corridor, which is why no refugees have headed to China. Afghan refugees turned to Pakistan and Iran due to their religious and traditional orientation. While in other countries due to the developed economy, Afghan refugees, who entered in any way, turned to America, the United Kingdom and Europe. Also, due to strict laws, Afghan refugees did not prefer Arab countries. Afghanistan is a landlocked country at the northwestern tip of South Asia, 4/5 of the country is mountainous and plateau, while its southeastern borders meet the South Asian subcontinent, northwestern Central Asia, and western Asia. Geographical location and terrain make it a communication artery between South Asia, Central Asia and West Asia. Wars are a part of Afghanistan’s history, with frequent attacks by invaders, protracted wars and civil wars in the number of refugees.

The fires of war have fled everywhere, mostly to the border, and the effects of the war and the barren natural environment have forced more than 3.5 million Afghans to flee and become refugees even though Afghanistan borders China.

China is not a traditional place of refuge for Afghan refugees, and Chinese refugees are usually only found in the Korean Peninsula and Southeast Asia because of their proximity to China and traditional customs and traditions.

The writer is a Lahore-based journalist.