Following recent escalations at the border points between Afghan and Pakistani security forces, social media platforms, especially X (formerly Twitter), were flooded with speculative reports about Pakistan controlling the Wakhan Corridor. However, these claims were promptly refuted and downplayed by officials on both sides of the border.

Tolo News, quoting Azizullah Omar, the police chief of Badakhshan province in Afghanistan, reported: “Afghan defence and security forces are stationed in the region, and there has been no movement by Pakistani troops.”

Likewise, the Foreign Ministry of Pakistan, in its weekly briefing, responded to a question, stating: “These reports are not correct. Pakistan respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Afghanistan.”

But what sparked these rumours? And why does the Wakhan Corridor hold such significant importance for both states?

Situated in northeastern Afghanistan, the Wakhan Corridor stretches approximately 350 kilometres and is a narrow strip of land connecting Afghanistan to China at its easternmost tip. Additionally, it serves as a boundary, with Tajikistan to the north and Pakistan to the south.

The Wakhan Corridor holds immense significance both geopolitically and geostrategically, largely due to its geographical location. Geopolitically, it acts as a critical juncture between Afghanistan and China while separating Pakistan from Tajikistan.

From a historical perspective, during the 19th-century Great Game between the British and Russian Empires, it served as a buffer zone.

From a geo-economic standpoint, the Wakhan Corridor is a vital pathway, acting as a gateway for trade routes between the resource-rich and hydrocarbon-rich Central Asian countries and South Asia. For Pakistan, the Wakhan also serves as a buffer zone between its northern regions and China’s Xinjiang province. Additionally, it acts as a gateway linking Pakistan to the landlocked Central Asian states.

For Afghanistan, through the Wakhjir Pass, the Wakhan Corridor provides a direct route to the highly developed markets of China. Furthermore, it functions as a buffer zone to curb the movement of illegal migrants and militants into Afghanistan from China.

Therefore, keeping in view the accumulative significance that the Wakhan Corridor holds for both countries, it is unlikely that any state would easily back off from their internationally recognized border.