ANALYSIS:
China will gain strategically from the removal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan after the stunning collapse of the U.S.-backed government and …
ANALYSIS: China will gain strategically from the removal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan after the stunning collapse of the U.S.-backed government and military there, according to American analysts. But that success will be balanced against the ruling Communist Party’s fear of having to contend with a radical Islamic state on its border in Central Asia and the potential flow of terrorists into China ‘s Xinjiang Province. Militarily, the Taliban takeover of the Southwest Asian state means Beijing can celebrate the removal of U.S. troops and accompanying spy bases from its western border. Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leaders have long regarded the presence of American and NATO troops in Afghanistan as a major threat. Afghanistan has a limited border with China through a strip of land known as the Wakhan Corridor linking the country to Xinjiang, where Uyghur Muslims face what the State Department calls genocide carried out under the guise of Chinese anti-terrorism policies. The withdrawal of American troops, however, now means Beijing faces the prospect of having to deal with the threat of a hostile, Taliban -led Islamic state on its border with Xinjiang and other western provinces. China has signaled it wants to work with the new regime in Kabul. Last month Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met in Shanghai with a Taliban official prompting speculation Beijing will be among the first to recognize the new government. The Chinese are expected to utilize President Xi Jinping’s centerpiece global infrastructure development project known as the Belt and Road Initiative as a means of influencing the Taliban regime, offering greater economic benefits to be included in the Chinese trading and investment web. Until recently, the American military presence in Afghanistan provided China with a pacifying influence on its western border. Leaders in Beijing long feared a conflict over Taiwan would escalate to include attacks from neighboring states such as India, Mongolia or Central Asian nations. The removal of U.S. troops from the region now allows Chinese party and military leaders to limit the spread of a conflict from there as they focus on the Taiwan question. Information wars Chinese state media also have been quick to seize on the swift Taliban victory in Afghanistan to further the claim that the United States is an unreliable security partner. China on Monday put the Taiwanese government on notice that the threat of American military power should no longer be relied on to deter or prevent a mainland military takeover.
