BRITAIN AND AFGHANISTAN.

Auckland Star, Volume LII, Issue 281, 25 November 1921, Page 5

BRITAIN AND AFGHANISTAN.

NEW TREATY ARRANGED. AMIR AND THE BOLSHEVIKS. LONDON', November 24. A treaty bet.veen Britain and Afghanistan has been eigncd at Kabul. It reaffirms the independence of Afghanistan, and arranges fur an interchange of Ministers at Kabul and London, with Consulates in India and Afghanistan. While the frontier demarcated in 1019 has been accepted, no further subsidies will be granted to the Amir, who is already accepting subsidies from the Bolsheviks. The Amir undertakes not to permit the establishment of Bolshevik Conpnlates on the Indian frontier. — (A. nnd N.Z. Cable.)

Discussing the Afghan negotiations recently tbe "Manchester Guardian" wrote:" The war which we waged in ifllO with the Afghans, who were supported by part of the frontier tribes, c-onjpelled us to restore to the present Amir the freedom to negotiate with foreign Powers whicli, for a subsidy, his predecessors had surrendered to us. ; Whatever cUe the result of the mission, it wns unlikely that, the Amir would submit again to such a restriction on his liberty. For he used his nrw freedom at once to make a treaty with Russia and to accept a subsidy from her, and we now know that the war sprang from a Moslem fanaticism which the Russians hastened to exploit. What prompted the Amir to invite a British mfeeion to Kabul wo do not know. That was the first problem that the mission had to .solve, but the most that we could reasonably look to gain was a ireatv of friendship, possibly sweetened in the accustomed way, which would have left the Afghans their right to treat with other Powers. Such a treaty would be a great gain, could we get it. if only that friendly relations with Afghanistan arc necessary to the maintenance of peace witli the unruly frontier tribes; the Amir ha* always means to keep the pot of trouble boiling among the wild men who live on our side of India's political frontier. Hut the counters in the bargaining are not i\vha;t they u«c4 to l»p. Before the war. the Afghans were afraid of the. steady Russian pressure southwards. Mow they have no military fears on the north, and they are free, if fhey choose, to put their powers of mischief againet us up for sale.