Afghanistan

Afghanistan
Country
Continent:	Asia
Capital:	Kabul
National Language:	Pashto · Dari
Government:	Unitary presidential republic
Status in OTL:	Active

Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked, mountainous, country located in the heart of Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan in the south and east; Iran in the west; Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan in the north; and China in the far northeast. Its territory covers 652,000 km2 (252,000 sq mi), making it the 41st largest country in the world.

Historically, it is a notoriously difficult country to invade and control--Alexander the Great, Genghis Khan, and the British Empire all came to grief there. The Soviet Union intervened in the country's second civil war with devastating consequences to both sides.

In the 1990s, the country came under the control of the Taliban, and in turn became a base of operations for terrorist group al-Qaeda. In the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, a multinational coalition invaded the country, and oversaw the removal of the Taliban from power. However, maintaining stability in the country has continued to prove difficult.

Afghanistan in Atlantis

Doctor James Walton was a veteran of the British Empire's attempts to conquer Afghanistan and one of the few to escape that hellhole alive. This service did make him well versed in Oriental lore.

Afghanistan in "Black Tulip"

Flag of the People's Democratic Republic of Afghanistan

Afghanistan fell into its second civil war in 1978. Shortly after the war began, the Soviet Union sent military forces into Afghanistan to support the Marxist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) government against the Mujahideen insurgents that were fighting to overthrow Communist rule.

In one battle, a dragon, slumbering for centuries, was wakened by the fighting. Enraged, the dragon slew an entire Soviet army.

Afghanistan in In the Presence of Mine Enemies

Afghanistan was conquered by Nazi Germany after World War II. It remained part of the Reich in the 21st century.

Afghanistan in Joe Steele

In March 1953, U.S. President John Nance Garner made Stas Mikoian ambassador to Afghanistan. This was demotion for Mikoian, who had been one of President Joe Steele's close advisers.

Afghanistan in The Two Georges

Afghanistan was an independent nation in Asia, landlocked between Persia, the Russian Empire, British India, and British China.

Afghanistan in Worldwar

Afghanistan was occupied by the Race during their invasion of Earth. Following the Peace of Cairo, it was a recognized part of the Race Colonies on Tosev 3.

Prior to the arrival of the Colonization Fleet, Soviet General-Secretary Vyacheslav Molotov instructed Foreign Commissar Andrei Gromyko to deliver a proclamation regarding Afghanistan. This declaration stated that the USSR was strongly opposed to the settlement of Race colonists in Afghanistan, which was dangerously close to Soviet borders. As the USSR lacked the resources to enforce this doctrine in any meaningful way, the Race largely ignored it.