Afghanistan's pivotal position and decades of civil war have led to the involvement of many neighbouring countries in Afghanistan's internal affairs.  It was crucial for Afghanistan to open up a dialogue with its neighbours to ensure support and cooperation for its fledgling democracy.

Kabul Declaration on Good Neighbourly Relations

In December 2002 representatives of Afghanistan, China, Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan signed a 'Declaration on Good Neighbourly Relations' in Kabul (declaration below).

The Declaration commits the signatories to the principles of territorial integrity, mutual respect, friendly relations, cooperation and mutual non-interference.

Since then Afghanistan and its neighbours have also signed Declarations on trade, transit and investment, designed to develop economic links between them as part of their commitment to strengthen relations; and on drugs.

Kabul Declaration on Good Neighbourly Relations (PDF 31.6kb, opens in a new window)

Kabul Declaration on Regional Economic Cooperation

Regional economic cooperation was given another boost at a conference held in Kabul in December 2005.

The Conference on Regional Economic Cooperation was jointly co-chaired by Afghanistan and the UK (in its capacity as G8 chair). Representatives from the neighbouring countries, the G8, the UN and international financial institutions attended.

The conference resulted in a Kabul Declaration, which set out areas for future regional activity and a process for carrying this forward.

The conference achieved a greater understanding of regional priorities for cooperation and published a 'Kabul Declaration' which set out areas for future regional activity and a process for carrying this forward.

Kabul Declaration on Regional Economic Cooperation (PDF 66.4kb, opens in a new window)