Journal of Crises and Political Research

Abstract

The relations between two countries, in addition to issues such as history, culture, geography, population, identity, demography, trade, economic political system and ideology, are affected by the interests of other countries towards these countries. Afghanistan and Pakistan have been maintaining an unstable neighborly relationship for seventy-five years in a geography that has historically been the field of great power rivalry. The process, which started with the Taliban's return to power in Afghanistan in August 2021, took place during a period when the international system had been undergoing transformation for a while. This period, in which the effects of the transition from a unipolar world to a multipolar world were felt to a great extent, has also been marked by challanges such as the Covid-19 pandemic and the Ukraine war. In this regard, the aim of the study is to try to understand dynamics of Afghanistan-Pakistan relations in the context of emerging multi-polar international environment. The study mainly explores how the relations between the two countries might be affected by the emerging international environment and the interests and policies of other countries in the region. The study argues that relative pause in the great power rivalry in the region provides opportunity to focus on bilateral relations in order to solve persisting problems.