A Tale of Two Stans: Afghan Motivations and Modalities in the Tajikistan Civil War

Studies into the foreign policies of world powers acting in the Middle East are plentiful, but significantly less focus is placed on the foreign policies of these states being acted upon. What are their motivations, their means, their capabilities? Given the significance of historical relations in Asian and Middle Eastern societies to their present day relationships, it follows that a gap in understanding the conflicts of the past is a gap in understanding the conflicts of the present. This project documents and analyzes one such historically-focused conflict, the Tajikistan Civil War, which engulfed the Central-Asian country between 1992 and 1997. The political and economic motivations and modalities of intervention into the conflict by the Islamic State of Afghanistan and later the Taliban Emirate are examined, and comparisons of policies are made so as to provide a greater understanding and documentation of Afghan foreign policy towards Tajikistan in the first years of independence of the Central-Asian state. Using both interviews with subject matter experts in addition to first and second hand documentation and articles, a categorized, detailed breakdown of Afghan foreign policy in Tajikistan between the civil war of 1992-1997 will be created and published. The hope is to provide greater knowledge on a comparatively understudied conflict and region, with the ultimate aim of providing a broader understanding of the current conflicts occurring in these areas. Ignite Grant Awar