| Summary/Abstract |
Afghanistan has been and will probably remain not so much an equal partner for the nations around it, as a kind of buffer or ideological (and sometimes military) front where battles are waged, cease-fires are entered, and political “exchanges” are carried out. This country, which is called the heart of Asia in diplomatic terms, is merely a venue for major political bargaining, but not a real participant in it. Today’s attitude toward the problems of various regional and global nations makes resolution of the Afghan question difficult and requires a multi-stage approach; in order to tackle this task, the countries of the international community are setting up various dialog venues and mechanisms.
At that, Afghanistan represents a melting pot of Central Asian, East Iranian, Persian, and Turkic traditions that go back to Muslim Shi’ism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Taoism. It is this intricate conglomerate that has determined the difficult lives of the people who call themselves Afghans and are trying to find their own niche in the Eurasian continent.
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