Afghanistan Profile:
Full name: Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
Population: 27.1 million (UN, 2007)
Capital and largest city: Kabul
Area: 652,225 sq km (251,773 sq miles)
Major languages: Pashto, Dari (Persian)
Major religion: Islam
Life expectancy: 44 years (men), 44 years (women) (UN)
Monetary unit: 1 Afghani = 100 puls
Main exports: Fruit and nuts, carpets, wool, opium
GNI per capita: n/a
Internet domain: .af
International dialling code: +93
The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan is a landlocked country that is located approximately in the center of Asia. It is variously designated as geographically located within Central Asia, South Asia,[and the Middle East. Afghanistan is bordered by Pakistan in the south and east Iran in the west, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan in the north, and China in the far northeast.
Afghanistan is a culturally mixed nation, a crossroads between the East and the West, and has been an ancient focal point of trade and migration. It has an important geostrategical location, connecting South, Central and Southwest Asia. During its long history, the land has seen various invaders and conquerors, while on the other hand, local entities invaded the surrounding vast regions to form their own empires. Ahmad Shah Durrani created the Durrani Empire in 1747, with its capital at Kandahar.Subsequently, the capital was shifted to Kabul and most of its territories ceded to former neighboring countries. In the late 19th century, Afghanistan became a buffer state in "The Great Game" played between the British Indian Empire and Russian Empire.On August 19, 1919, following the third Anglo-Afghan war, the country regained full independence from the United Kingdom over its foreign affairs.
Since the late 1970s Afghanistan has suffered continuous and brutal civil war, which included foreign interventions in the form of the 1979 Soviet invasion and the recent 2001 US-led invasion that toppled the Taliban government. In late 2001 the United Nations Security Council authorized the creation of an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). This force is composed of NATO troops that are involved in assisting the government of President Hamid Karzai in establishing the writ of law as well as rebuilding key infrastructures in the country.
