Vestnik RUDN. International Relations (Dec 2017)
RUSSIA RETURNS TO AFGHANISTAN: PROSPECTS OF BILATERAL ECONOMIC COOPERATION
Abstract
He article discusses the dynamics of the development of the economic situation in the Is-lamic Republic of Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban regime in 2001, and the current state and prospects of development of Russian-Afghan trade and economic relations. Russia and Afghanistan have a long history of cooperation. In the XX century, the Soviet Union provided economic assistance to Afghanistan, including the financing and construction of objects of industry and infrastructure, which are now in need of rehabili-tation and modernization. The accumulated experience of cooperation makes Russia may be one of the major players in Afghani-stan and participate in reconstruction of the country. The relevance of this article stems from the fact that at the present time in conditions of economic sanctions and the deterioration of relations with countries of the West, Russia intends to renew and develop relationships with long-term partners. Today Afghanistan is trying to recover from the devastating effects of years of civil war, and invite Russia to join this process. This means that Russia had a unique chance to return and gain a foothold in the market of Afghanistan, which will be an advantage for the development of cooperation between the two countries. The task of the article is analysis of the economic situation in Afghanistan, in order to study the possibilities of deepening and development of Russian-Afghan trade and economic cooperation. The analysis of Russian-Afghan relations showed that to date, despite the existence of certain problems faced by our country, the development of trade and economic relations is a promising direction of bilateral cooperation.
Keywords