Afghanistan is a landlocked country in Central-Asia. It has long borders with Iran and Pakistan. It borders on three of the new Central Asian republics: Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikstan. It has a very short border with China which is the result of a strange 19-th century Anglo-Russian deal.
Afghanistan used to be quite a popular travel destination in the 70's when hippies would go overland to India. The capital Kabul was a popular hangout, back then. Things have changed big time since then.
It started in 1979 when Afghanistan was invaded and occupied by the Soviet Union. The USSR was forced to withdraw 10 years later by anti-communist mujahidin forces supplied and trained by the US, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and others.
Fighting subsequently continued among the various mujahidin factions, but the fundamentalist Islamic Taliban movement has been able to seize most of the country. In addition to the continuing civil strife, the country suffers from enormous poverty, a crumbling infrastructure, and widespread live mines.
0 comments
Post a Comment