>>44754
Pretty nice composition with that traditional painting in the back, they look similar
>For example Iran gains a safer neighbour - in case of US meddling
At least short-medium term situation should be clearly better than having more US bases next door
>Maybe Afghanistan will be a land route between Iran and China.
yes, if Afghanistan can be estabilised quickly enough then maybe they can be offered some role in China's new "silk road" economic area that we hear from time to time. But the obvious problem for China, though, is the effects of militant islamism on Xinjiang and uygurs and the flame-fanning that comes from the western media. One might think they should be able to deal with it economically (rather than militarily, I suppose they won't be eager to saddle themselves with war), but the problem is that the Taliban is not very centralised, so it's uncertain whether their authorities can keep whatever bilateral deal they sign, even if they do so in good faith
>And there's the opium and its trade ofc.
Interestingly, the recent opium boom happened during the occupation. Maybe they will burn them all again as they once did.
>Pakistan closed her borders.
Pakistan has a porous border with Afghanistan. There are even some pockets over which Islamabad doesn't have good control and are de-facto dominated by TTP chiefs.
I do think they preferred the Taliban over the US puppet government, since they seem to have provided them some help or at least refuge. The obvious reasons are being islamic vs. liberal-secular, and the fact that India was invested in the Kabul government (for the same religious reason), so Pakistan had go against it

I think it all comes down to whether Taliban will settle down and try to maintain a unified policy between all their different chieftains
>>44758
Still surprising how quickly it all crumbled. If the US knew then they deliberately misled as part of some secret deal. But those crazy and pathetic scenes at the airport make me suspect that they were just winging it as they went along