The Wakhan corridor: Separating fact from fiction amid social media frenzy

What was Pakistan's intelligence chief doing in Tajikistan? Has it to do with Islamabad's tense relations with the Taliban? Are the Pakistanis gearing up to take over a piece of land known as the Wakhan corridor? And what is the Wakhan corridor anyway?

These are the questions on many minds after the December 30, 2024, visit of Pakistan's spymaster Lieutenant General Asim Malik to Tajikistan sparked widespread speculation.

Some have wondered if Pakistan is looking to "annex" Afghanistan's Wakhan corridor, a narrow strip of land squeezed between Tajikistan and Pakistan. The corridor stretches from Afghanistan's Badakhshan province to China.

Over the past week, the Wakhan corridor has piqued the interest of some Pakistani social media users. Fuelled by defence-related online forums and influencers, rumours about Islamabad potentially seizing the area have captured public imagination.

Although Pakistan has not been involved in any invasion or annexation since its inception, provocations over the Wakhan corridor have quickly emerged online, but these have been confined to social media rumours, far from reality, amid growing tensions in a region where terrorism rears its ugly head.

To separate fact from fiction, TRT World reached out to experts Adam N. Weinstein, deputy director at the Quincy Institute, and Maleeha Lodhi, Pakistan’s former envoy to the United Nations.

Spanning approximately 321 kilometres (200 miles), the Wakhan corridor is a sparsely populated, mountainous land bridge connecting Afghanistan to China. Historically, it served as a trade route along the Silk Road and was a strategic buffer during the 'Great Game' of the 19th century between British India and Tsarist Russia.

Today, while the corridor remains geopolitically insignificant, its proximity to Pakistan, Tajikistan and China gives it strategic allure.

Weinstein attributes the online obsession with the corridor to Pakistan's ongoing struggle with domestic terrorism and its limited influence over the Afghan Taliban.

"Wild speculation about seizing Afghan territory is not surprising," he tells TRT World. "On the flip side, Afghan Taliban accounts push dreams of a 'Greater Afghanistan' beyond the Durand Line. Both are fantasies."

Durand Line is the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Lodhi dismisses the annexation rumours as "not credible" and points to a more pressing concern: the escalating tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan. "Recent armed clashes have injected more strain into an already fragile relationship," she says.

While much of the speculation can be chalked up to overactive imaginations, both experts suggest that some narratives may be deliberately crafted.

Lodhi highlights the role of recent armed clashes and Pakistan's military operations against the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in Afghanistan, which have exacerbated tensions.

The Pakistani Taliban is distinct from the Afghan Taliban, with different goals and leadership. But the two groups are considered ideologically aligned, and Islamabad accuses the Afghan Taliban of harbouring TTP terrorists, a charge Kabul denies.

Weinstein also points to Pakistan's recent diplomatic moves, including the intelligence chief's visit to Tajikistan, as indicative of shifting dynamics.

"Pakistan is seeking partners against terrorism emanating from Afghanistan, and a high-profile trip to Tajikistan is bound to ruffle the Taliban's feathers," he says.

Tajikistan has its own concerns about Afghanistan, dating back to the country's independence in 1991, according to Bruce Pannier, a Central Asia Fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute. Tajik President Emomali Rahmon has consistently called the Taliban a threat to Tajikistan and Central Asia.

Historically, Tajikistan has supported Afghan groups opposed to the Taliban, especially the Northern Alliance, which sought refuge there during the Taliban's first rule in the late 1990s.

Since the Taliban's return to power in 2021, resistance groups like the National Resistance Front (NRF), led by Ahmad Massoud, have reportedly found sanctuary near Tajikistan's border, though the Tajik government denies hosting these groups.

When the Pakistani spymaster met with the Tajik president, speculations intensified.

Veteran Pakistani journalist Najam Sethi called the visit a "significant" development, noting that it should be understood in the context of the Afghan Taliban's growing ties with Pakistan's archrival, India.

"This is the beginning of another 'Great Game' in Afghanistan," Sethi said in his talk show on Samaa TV.

While these diplomatic efforts may reflect Pakistan's frustration with the Afghan Taliban, Lodhi suggests they also show a desire for engagement.

"Pakistan's special envoy for Afghanistan, Muhammad Sadiq, held talks with Taliban leaders in Kabul late last year," she says. "Although these talks were overshadowed by the air strikes conducted by Pakistan against TTP hideouts in Afghanistan, diplomatic engagement is expected to pick up after a pause."

Despite the mounting tensions, Lodhi remains cautiously optimistic about future relations.

"Neither side wants a breakdown in relations," she tells TRT World. "Both are keen to engage to address the obstacles in their ties."