Pakistan's petroleum cutoff over the Pashtunistan issue and the
resulting trade agreement between Afghanistan and the Soviet Union
were major watersheds in bilateral relations. The agreement was
much more than a barter arrangement exchanging Soviet oil, textiles,
and manufactured goods for Afghan wool and cotton; the Soviets
offered construction aid to erect petroleum storage facilities,
to explore oil and gas reserves in northern Afghanistan, and permission
for free transportation of goods across Soviet territory. This
new relationship was attractive not only because it made it difficult
for Pakistan to disrupt the Afghan economy by blockading or slowing
down transshipped goods but also because it provided a balance
to United States aid in the Helmand Valley Project. After 1950
Soviet-Afghan trade increased sharply as Soviet technicians were
welcomed and a trade office was opened.
Country
name Afghanistan conventional long form Islamic State of
Afghanistan conventional short form Afghanistan local long
form Dowlat-e Eslami-ye Afghanestan local short form Afghanestan former Republic of Afghanistan
Area
- total: 647,500 sq km land: 647,500 sq km water: 0 sq km
Terrain
- mostly rugged mountains; plains in north and southwest
Climate
- arid to semiarid; cold winters and hot summers
Geography
- landlocked; the Hindu Kush mountains that run northeast to southwest divide
the northern provinces from the rest of the country; the highest peaks are in
the northern Vakhan (Wakhan Corridor)
Waterways
- 1,200 km note: chiefly Amu Darya, which handles vessels up to 500 DWT (2001)
Natural hazards - damaging earthquakes
occur in Hindu Kush mountains; flooding; droughts
Information
Courtesy: The Library of Congress - Country Studies
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