I was taking a picture of an ancient Buddhist site when I wasstopped by a Soviet Red Army soldier at the Soviet-AfghanistanFriendship Bridge across the river Amu Darya near Termez, wheretens of thousands of Soviet soldiers were buried in a nearbygraveyard. The Soviet war in Afghanistan killed 15,000 Sovietsoldiers and 1.5 million Afghans. "No photos," the Soviet soldier warned me. "I'm an archaeological reporter," I told him. "No journalists are allowed to take photos here," he said, pointinghis rifle at me. Ten years after my visit to Afghan border, the US led anotherinvasion of Afghanistan. The aim of the US-led Afghan War was tokill Osama bin Laden. Now with the death of bin Laden, Obamaannounced that a total of 40,000 US troops would be withdrawn bythe summer of 2012. The war in Afghanistan was the longest war the US has ever fought.At least 2,753 NATO fighters were killed. NATO and the USgovernment have refused to release the number of civilian deaths inthe war. In the 1980s the Soviet army was the cause of the Afghan issue. TheSoviets tried to liberate the Afghan people from fundamentalist andfeudal shackles but this only led to resentment. The same happenedwith the Americans. China should take the initiative to help promote nationalreconciliation and reconstruction as Afghanistan prepares for thewithdrawal of US-led troops. In contrast to the US and other Western countries who have leftblack marks on their copybooks because of past invasions, China'srelationship with Afghanistan is a clean book. China is rememberedas a civilized country by all fighting groups and political forcesin Afghanistan. China should express her desire for friendly relations with itswar-torn neighboring country after NATO withdraws its troops. China is now investing billions of dollars in Afghan reconstructionand the oil and mining industries. China needs to undertake apolicy of broader engagement there. China cannot continue the US' failed Afghan policy by trying towipe all the insurgents. China should persuade all the fightingforces to sit at a roundtable for national reconciliation. I believe that given China's long-time respect for Afghansovereignty, China could do a better job in influencing itsneighbor to the west than NATO countries. One thing China should assure the Afghan people of is that it willnot send troops or military aid to the country. With the withdrawal of US troops from a region which is a highlysensitive part of China's national security, China can feel more atease to open Wakhan corridor, creating a short cut for Afghanistanto the Kashgar special economic zone. In the meantime, China should initiate a regional community forumon political reconciliation, peaceful development and regionalcooperation. As the first step, China must initiate a three-party strategicagreement with Afghanistan and Pakistan, pushing for theestablishment of a Pamir Group of the three countries. The 10-year Afghan war has not only thrown the country back intothe Stone Age, it has also sown the seeds of distrust betweenAfghanistan and its long-time brother Pakistan. China must doeverything possible to assuage the distrust between the twocountries. In the long run, China must initiate a multi-party dialogue amongAfghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, India and China, creating afive-country group for regional economic cooperation. China should recognize that any regional cooperation must respectthe sovereignty and the territorial integrity of the countries inthe region. Their national interests are sacred and supreme. The author is director of the Tsinghua University Center forPakistan Studies, Xiguang@tsinghua.edu.cn. We are high quality suppliers, our products such as Rfid Smart Cards , Rfid Reader Module Manufacturer for oversee buyer. To know more, please visits Clamshell Card.
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