Notwithstanding their mutual rivalries, all major world powers are at one with each other on the question of restoring peace and stability to Afghanistan. A few days ago, China appointed a seasoned diplomat well-conversant with this region's affairs as former ambassador to Afghanistan and India, Sun Yuxi, as Special Envoy for Afghanistan. The appointment is reflective of Beijing's decision to play a more proactive role in promoting peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan. Sun Yuxi arrived in Pakistan on Sunday following extensive meetings with Afghan President Hamid Karzai and the two leading presidential candidates, Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah. In the coming days he is to visit the US, Russia, India and Iran to discuss reconciliation efforts as part of the Istanbul process.
It is rather unusual for Beijing to act in a hands-on fashion in a conflict situation. There are strong reasons for it to do that. First and foremost, like the US and other Western countries as well as Russia, China has serious concerns about Afghanistan becoming a safe haven for religious extremists from its restive Xinjiang province. Already engaged in copper mining, it is also interested in Afghanistan's rich mineral resources. The Special Envoy noted that his country is concentrating on various infrastructure development projects because, as he aptly put it many times, economic development rather than military means resolve problem. The key challenge, though, in the present situation is pacifying ideologically-inspired, unvanquished Taliban. They need to be convinced to participate in a new unity government.
There is no doubt about that the international community is not going to let the Taliban take over Kabul and re-establish their oppressive rule in Afghanistan. The Special Envoy mentioned that some US forces would remain in the country following the December combat troops pullout deadline, thus indicating that his country has no objection to the US military presence so close to its borders to continue for some time. For its part, he said, China would go on providing equipment, communication and logistical support to the Afghan army and concentrate on economic development. In other words, if the Taliban are waiting for the international forces to leave to recapture power, they will not find the new Kabul government standing alone. Therefore, the best way forward for all concerned is to find a negotiated solution. Sun Yuxi said that "so far we have not directly got involved with Afghan groups, including Taliban, and we place our hope in the new government." Implicit in these remarks is the intention to change the previous policy of semi-detachment. Since the Taliban have no cause of conflict with China, the country's direct involvement in convincing them to join the proposed unity government seems to have a decent chance of success.