John Simpson: Afghanistan, its future, and why China matters - BBC News

The Khyber Pass ends at Torkham - Afghanistan's busiest border crossing with Pakistan.

On the road, where the actual border runs, a couple of Pakistani soldiers stand face to face with Taliban guards wearing makeshift uniforms.

The Taliban had no objection to talking to me.

I asked one of them, a big man with a bushy beard covered by a face-mask, why the national green and red flag of Afghanistan wasn't flying over the border post.

It has been replaced by the white flag of the Taliban, inscribed with the Shahada, the basic statement of the Muslim faith: "There is no god but God, and Muhammad is His messenger.".

"Our country is now an Islamic Caliphate," the border guard answered proudly, "and this is the correct flag for the whole country.".

There are occasional moments of tension, but for the most part the Pakistani and Taliban border guards face each other without hostility.

To most governments, a relationship with the Taliban is distinctly embarrassing right now.

The country which has the closest relationship with the Taliban is China, which doesn't show the slightest sign of embarrassment at all.

With so many ordinary Afghans trying to flee their country, its economy seems certain to crash, as it did when the Taliban were last in power, from 1996 to 2001.

Therefore, Chinese economic support will be needed to keep Afghanistan afloat, and that will give Beijing a sizeable degree of control over Taliban policy.

We can also be pretty certain that the Taliban won't challenge China on awkward issues like the treatment of its Muslim and Uighur population.

The Taliban take-over of power has been disastrous for the United States, Britain, Germany, France and other countries which have helped Afghanistan over the past 20 years.

Last time they were in control, the Taliban were treated as international pariahs?

The difference is China?