After a quarter century war, Afghanistan thrust itself into the spotlight by creating new foreign policy with the intent of bridging Southern Asia and the Middle East with the West. The official name of Afghanistan is the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Afghanistan is a landlocked country, located in Southern Asia. Bordered by Iran and Turkmenistan to the West, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan to the North, Pakistan to the Southeast with a small portion of its border touching China to the Northwest. (CIA) Afghanistan is the slightly smaller then the state of Texas. The climate in Afghanistan is arid or semi-arid steppe type, with typically cold winters and dry, hot summers. The highest temperatures and lowest precipitation are in the southwestern plains region, where summer temperatures reach 49° C. Low temperatures in the northeastern mountains range from -15° C in winter to 0° C in summer. (LOC) The terrain of Afghanistan is dominated by rugged mountain ranges, which generally run from the northeast to the southwest. The capital city of Afghanistan is Kabul. It is difficult to determine the population because many of the citizens do not have a constant residence, however; in 2008 Afghanistan's population was estimated at 32.7 million people. (CIA) The main ethnic groups are Pashtun, 42 percent; Tajik, 27 percent; Hazara, 9 percent; Uzbek, 9 percent; Aimak (a Persian-speaking nomadic group), 4 percent; Turkmen, 3 percent; and Baloch, 2 percent. (CIA) The primary language is Dari and Pashtu. The majority of the population is Muslim with a small number of Hindu's. In 2006 an estimated 57 percent of men and 87 percent of women were illiterate. (LOC) In 1747 Ahmad Shah Durrani established the country of Afghanistan in Kandahar, to guarantee the independence of Afghanistan by acclaiming sovereignty from the neighboring powers. In the 19th century, England and Russia both tried to occupy this strategic territory. Afghanistan gained its independence from Britain in 1919. (LOC) After 1943 there was a long period of peace followed, in which Afghanistan remained neutral during World War II. Later there was a divide in the Pashtun tribe, which resulted in Afghanistan shifting its foreign policy towards the Soviet Union while the other half the divide turned towards Pakistan. During the Cold War, Afghanistan was member of the group of non-aligned nations, and received support for its development from both the Soviet Union and the United States of America. Due to civil unrest the Soviets would invade in 1979 in an effort to influence the government and not withdrawal the last of its forces until 1989. In 1988 there was a peace agreement drawn up but this agreement did not create the peace desired between the government and the mujahideen and 1992 civil war began to put additional stress on an already weakening economy. In 1996 the Taliban, who was created by the active and sustained support of Pakistan and some other regional and international entities took control and began to implement extreme Shari law. After the September 11th 2001 attacks on the United States and the Taliban's refusal to turn over Osama Bin Ladin, the United States and allies invaded Afghanistan in a war on terror that continues today.

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