THE SITUATION IN AFGHANISTAN (original) (raw)

2016, UFRGS Model United Nations

The present article assesses both historical and current aspects of the conflict in Afghanistan. The country has a great geopolitical importance, historically being a trade and energy hub in Central Asia and a crossroad for different cultures and people-thus, it has been a subject of dispute among great powers, such as Russia and Great Britain, in the 19th century, and the USSR and the United States, in the late 20th century. The year of 2001, nonetheless, marked a new moment in the Afghan history: as a response to the 9/11 attacks-claimed by Osama bin Laden's group Al-Qaeda-, an important measure of the War on Terror foreign policy of George W. Bush was implemented. Having reasons to believe the Taliban government in Afghanistan protected the Al-Qaeda leader, the United States and NATO allies invaded the country in order to dismantle its regime-in which it had succeeded. More than a decade later, still, the country is far from stable. After NATO's withdrawal more than a year ago, Afghanistan lives some of the most violent times in last years, with the resurgence of an increasingly violent Taliban and the worrying rise of the Islamic State in the country.