It’s been a year since China’s narrative on Afghanistan shifted. Their rhetoric has shifted from overly cautious to more assertive. Beijing has now called for more visible and verifiable actions against the safe havens of militants on Afghan soil. To realize this, China has offered its complete support to the Afghan regime in countering terror groups and has expressed full confidence.

Such statements highlight China’s serious aim to halt the spillover effect of extremism into China and its neighbors, and this has led to today's firmer and tougher demands to curb the menace of terrorism. This continued pledge from 2021, along with recent joint communiques, indicates that Beijing is shifting from merely verbal and general appeals to more concrete actions with partners.

These cautions are not something new and have been discussed at numerous international forums. On September 30, 2025, in a joint communique of the third quadrilateral meeting of foreign ministers of China, Iran, Pakistan, and Russia, the ministers called on the de facto Taliban regime to take concrete and visible steps to dismantle all the terror outfits on the basis of non-discrimination and ensure that Afghan soil is not to be used against any neighboring country. Similarly, on January 04, 2026, the deputy prime minister of Pakistan and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met in Beijing and called for more visible and verifiable steps to eliminate terrorist organizations based in Afghanistan.

Earlier, second informal meeting on Afghanistan between the foreign ministers of China, Russia, Pakistan, and Iran in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, held on April 13, 2023, showed deep concerns about the escalating terror activities conducted by ISIS-KP, Al-Qaeda, ETIM, and TTP, and the BLA. Their continued role in downgrading the security situation in Afghanistan is posing serious security threats to regional as well as global peace. Approximately a month before the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, in July 2021, the SCO foreign minister meeting urged the SCO to counter terrorism cooperation with Afghanistan and proposed that the Taliban honor the commitment to break with the designated terror organizations. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi stressed that the land of Afghanistan should never again be a breeding ground for terror or a gathering place for terror. Likewise, the UN ambassador of China, Fu Cong, called on the Taliban to  investigate the killing of Chinese nationals near the Afghan-Tajik border at the UN Security Council meeting on December 10, 2025.

China’s counterterrorism approach in Afghanistan is largely shaped by bilateral and trilateral diplomacy grounded in the belief that connectivity goals and counterterrorism go hand in hand. Higher security cooperation safeguards investment and trade. China-Pakistan cooperation is the heart of this strategy, with regular meetings, keeping Afghanistan as the primary focus. Pakistan has commended Chinese efforts to protect both infrastructure under the BRI and the Chinese citizens on Pakistani soil, illustrating a linkage between shared economic interests and security arrangements. The cooperation is extended to defense as well with the Pak-China Joint Exercise Warrior-VIII conducted from November 19 to December 11, 2024 after years of dormancy. Such developments indicate that Chinese counterterrorism efforts are no longer rhetorical and have shifted to coordinate with allies.

China has also deepened ties with other regional partners. In August 2024, Wang Yi visited Afghanistan, and offered to extend CPEC into Kabul if the situation permits. On August 20, 2025, he met with Mullah Muhammad Hassan Akhund and attended the sixth China-Afghanistan-Pakistan Foreign Ministers’ Dialogue in Afghanistan. He supported the Afghan government's focus on development, counterterrorism, and building friendly relations with its neighbors.  During a meeting with the Tajik counterpart, Sirojiddin Muhriddin, in Dushanbe in November 2025, Wang termed Afghanistan “an undeniable neighbor” and demonstrated a commitment to continued cooperation to support peace and stability in the country. Such bilateral and trilateral talks create a web of regional support in fighting cross-border terrorism.

Chinese assertiveness is driven by clear, pragmatic interests and foremost interests is the security of citizens and infrastructure. The attacks on Chinese nationals are of paramount concern. The recent blast in a Chinese-linked restaurant in Kabul that took the lives of one Chinese national and six Afghan nationals once again exposed the fragile security and loss of control over militant networks. In January 2025, a Chinese national was killed in a gun attack in Takhar province, northeastern Afghanistan, by an IS-KP affiliate. In late 2025, five Chinese nationals were killed, and five more were injured in Tajikistan, in an attack launched from the Afghan soil. Given the spill-over effect of the fear, Beijing sees that allowing any safe havens next door would not only put Chinese nationals in danger but also endanger its diplomatic mission and infrastructure.

Second in the line is the Economic interest, further underpinning China’s position. Chinese companies have signed multi-billion-dollar contracts for projects like the Mes Aynak copper mine. For Beijing, it is crucial to secure access to these critical minerals used in battery technology and defense equipment, which is crucial for both commercial and strategic needs. In this regard, a stable and secure Afghanistan is best positioned to protect Chinese investments and transit routes.

Regional stability remains the broader geopolitical goal too. Beijing has vowed to make Afghanistan a partner in development rather than a Launchpad for conflict. To minimize the chaos, China has advocated for the much-needed lifting of international sanctions on Afghanistan and argues that economic development is a prerequisite to eliminating extremism. China views a stable Kabul as a bridge linking its Xinjiang province through Central Asia and South Asia toward the Middle East and Europe. Afghanistan sits at the hinge between Central Asia and South Asia, where slight security gains can make the north-south and east-west corridors viable.

Keeping the grounded realities, China has integrated a counterterrorism approach as an integral part of broader regional statecraft this time. With the demand for concrete, verifiable actions, China is moving away from the long-held non-interference principle toward a more conditional engagement linking political recognition, economic connectivity, and diplomatic support to measurable security outcomes. Afghanistan thus becomes a test for China, whether it can align development first with diplomacy and credible counterterrorism initiatives.

The shifting narrative on Afghanistan is viewed differently by global players. Western leaders emphasize governance and rights as prerequisites for legitimacy whereas Beijing prioritizes stability and containment of transnational threats. India views the engagement through a competitive lens. They are of the view that Chinese influence in Kabul, combined with the partnership with Pakistan, can redefine the regional power dynamics. In Russia's case, it is more aligned with Beijing's security-first framing, viewing militant spillover as a shared threat to Central Asia.  

To sum up, this approach is not without challenges either. Internal fragmentation within the Taliban raises doubts about the sustainability of compliance. If the Afghan government seeks legitimacy, it must act against all militant groups without discrimination. Visible and verifiable actions remain essential to winning global support and confidence.

Muhammad Asif Khan is a researcher affiliated with the Consortium for Asia-Pacific and Eurasian Studies (CAPES), Islamabad. His research focuses on China’s regional politics and foreign policy, with a particular interest in analyzing geopolitical dynamics and their global implications.