Can Central Asia Be Afghanistan’s Bridge to the World?

Earlier this month, the Taliban completed a 75-mile gravel road through the Wakhan Corridor, a narrow valley linking Afghanistan to China. The road is part of a Taliban campaign pressing Beijing to bring Afghanistan into the Belt and Road Initiative, but China has so far declined. Its hesitation is about more than difficult terrain. Militant threats to Xinjiang, a banking system that traps foreign capital, unreliable contracts, and Kabul’s escalating conflict with Pakistan all make Afghanistan a risky partner. Meanwhile, Central Asia is slowly becoming Afghanistan’s commercial gateway: Kazakh-Afghan trade has more than doubled this year, and Kazakh and Uzbek banks are building the financial links that traders need. For Washington, this route could strengthen Central Asia’s independence from Russia, complement the Middle Corridor, and advance U.S. critical minerals goals. Should Washington help Central Asia become Afghanistan’s bridge to the world?

The Center for the National Interest is pleased to host a special Zoom webinar—“Can Central Asia Be Afghanistan’s Bridge to the World?”—from 9:00 am to 10:00 am EDT on Thursday, October 22. Amel Metjahic, Fellow at Nightingale Int., will discuss his new article in The National Interest, “Afghanistan’s Road to Nowhere, and the Central Asian Way Around It.” Eldaniz Gusseinov, Co-founder and Head of Research at Nightingale Int., will respond. Andrew C. Kuchins, Senior Fellow at the Center for the National Interest and author of the recent report The Case for Deeper U.S. Engagement with Afghanistan, will moderate. Please register with the link below.

—Amel Metjahic is a fellow at Nightingale International, a Kazakhstan-based intelligence firm. His work specializes in business and trade in Central Asia and the Caucasus. He is also the managing director of Kolander Capital. His work has appeared in The Astana Times.

—Eldaniz Gusseinov is Co-founder and Head of Research at Nightingale Int., a geopolitical foresight agency. His work focuses on forecasting methods, trade corridors, regional conflicts, and the strategic behavior of middle powers across Eurasia. He has worked for several academic institutions and think tanks in Europe and Central Asia, and he has authored and edited numerous analytical papers on regional integration, transport infrastructure, and critical minerals policy.

Andrew C. Kuchins, Senior Fellow at the Center for the National Interest, will moderate.