China assists Taliban in initiating joint patrols along Wakhan Border

KABUL: China is urging the Taliban to assist in the fight against terrorism and to initiate joint patrols along the Afghanistan border. According to a report by the South China Morning Post, during a visit to Kabul, Foreign Minister Wang Yi emphasized China’s security concerns, particularly regarding the Wakhan Corridor, which shares a border with Xinjiang. China is apprehensive about Uyghur separatists, with reports indicating that some Uyghurs previously based in Waziristan are now residing in Afghanistan. China has called for broader cooperation with Afghanistan in counter-terrorism efforts, which includes conducting joint patrols along the Wakhan Corridor, the only shared border between the two countries. Wang Yi stated during a meeting with Sirajuddin Haqqani, the Taliban’s acting Minister of Interior, that “China supports the swift resumption of bilateral patrols in the Wakhan Corridor to maintain peace and stability in the border area.” Additionally, the Chinese Foreign Ministry, in a statement regarding Wang Yi’s visit to Kabul, noted that he mentioned the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) during a meeting with Taliban Prime Minister Mawlavi Mohammad Hassan Akhund.