THE ‘UNCONQUERABLE’ AFGHANISTAN: A PLACE WHERE EMPIRES COME TO DIE AND THE ‘THIRD GREAT GAME’?
THE ‘UNCONQUERABLE’ AFGHANISTAN: A PLACE WHERE EMPIRES COME TO DIE AND THE ‘THIRD GREAT GAME’?

Summary/Abstract: The strategic location of Afghanistan at the foot of the Hindu Kush and being the entry point connecting Central Asia, South Asia and the Middle East together, has meant the country has always been the centre of imperial conquest and rivalry. Despite many great empires having come, or attempted so, to Afghanistan, including the Persians, Greeks, British, Russians and Americans, all have struggled or failed to subjugate the Afghans, giving the country a reputation as being ‘unconquerable’. The paper explores the question of whether Afghanistan is unconquerable and whether it is a place where empires see the beginning of their end. Through this context, we begin with the Anglo-Afghan Wars and go right through to the contemporary where the ‘Third Great Game’ is taking place between the Great Powers of the US, Russia and China, as well as regional powers Iran, Pakistan and India, to have influence over Afghanistan and the greater Central Asian region.

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