Taliban celebrates new Wakhan Corridor road to China, border remains closed

Afghanistan’s Taliban‑led government marked the completion of a road through the Wakhan Corridor on 4 October, although the route stops at the closed frontier with China.

The Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development said the unpaved, gravel‑surfaced road was built in two phases at a cost of 365 million afghanis (about $5.5 million). It runs through Badakhshan province to the Wakhjir Pass, an altitude of nearly 4,900 metres where the Afghan side meets China.

Snow typically shuts the pass for at least five months each year and there is no official border crossing or Chinese customs facility on the other side. China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not commented on the opening.

The narrow Wakhan Corridor, about 350 km long, lies between Tajikistan and Pakistan but remains Afghan territory, linking Afghanistan with China. Historically shaped by 19th‑century British‑Russian rivalry, the border with China was only settled in 1963.

While the Taliban hopes the road will reduce reliance on Pakistan and open new trade routes to Chinese and Central Asian markets, Beijing remains wary, citing security concerns and the remote, seasonal nature of the pass.

Source: Al Jazeera. Photo: Hector Perez / Pexels.