The Durand Line, also known as the Afghanistan–Pakistan International border, is a international border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. The western end runs to the border with Iran and the eastern end to the border with China.
The Durand Line was established in 1893 as the international border between the Emirate of Afghanistan and the British Indian Empire by Mortimer Durand, a British diplomat of the Indian Civil Service, and Abdur Rahman Khan, the Emir of Afghanistan, to fix the limit of their respective spheres of influence and improve diplomatic relations and trade. The single-page Agreement, dated 12 November 1893, contains seven short articles, including a commitment not to exercise interference beyond the Durand Line. A joint British-Afghan demarcation survey took place starting from 1894, covering some of the border."The total length of the boundary which had been delimited and demarcated between March 1894 and May 1896, amounted to 800 miles". The long stretch from the Kabul River to China, including the Wakhan Corridor, was declared demarcated by virtue of its continuous, distinct watershed ridgeline, leaving only the section near the Khyber Pass, which was finally demarcated in 1921: An adjustment to the demarcation was made at Arundu in the early 1930s:
Established towards the end of the British–Russian "Great Game" rivalry, the resulting line established Afghanistan as a buffer zone between British and Russian interests in the region. The line created Wakhan Corridor as buffer between British and Russian empires and granted Nuristan (then known as Kafiristan) and parts of Chitral to Afghanistan, while giving up claims to Waziristan and Chageh. It also permitted arms imports from British India and increased the subsidy given to Afghanistan from 1.2 to 1.8 million rupees. The line, as modified and ratified by the Anglo-Afghan Treaty of 1919, was inherited by Pakistan in 1947, following its independence. From a geopolitical and geostrategic perspective, it has been described as one of the most dangerous borders in the world.
The Durand Line is internationally recognized as the western border of Pakistan, although it remains largely unrecognised in Afghanistan. However many non-Pashtun ethnic groups in Afghanistan, such as Tajiks and Hazaras, have expressed its recognition. In April 2017, the Tajik politician Abdul Latif Pedram and his National Congress Party (NCP) recognised the Durand Line as the official border, which sparked outrage from the Pashtun nationalists. In February 2026, a Hazara politician Taher Zohair, the former governor of Bamyan, said that "Durand is an official border and whoever does not accept it is irrational".
Background The area through which the Durand Line runs became a part of Achaemenid Empire in 2500 BCE, followed by Seleucids, Mauryas, Kushans, and after the conquest of Sasanian Empire, of Arab caliphates. Arab Muslims conquered the area in the 7th century and introduced Islam to the Pashtuns. It is believed that some of the early Arabs also settled among the Pashtuns in the Sulaiman Mountains. Muslim conquests were followed by the Ghaznavid Empire in the 10th century, who in turn were succeeded by a variety of Islamic kingdoms including the Ghurids, Timurids, and Mughals, until 1748, when shortly after the death of Nader Shah Afshar, Durrani Empire was established by Ahmad Shah Abdali. The empire founded by Ahmad Shah disintegrated after his death in 1772 but Dost Mohammad Khan restored order in most parts in 1826. However, areas such as Peshawar were lost to the Sikhs in 1834.
The term "Afghanistan" was officially used in 1855, when the British recognized Dost Mohammad Khan as king of Afghanistan. Previously, the region was known as Khorasan.
In 1839, during the First Anglo-Afghan War, British-led Indian forces invaded Afghanistan and initiated a war with the Afghan rulers. Two years later, in 1842, the British were defeated and the war ended. The British again invaded Afghanistan in 1878, during the Second Anglo-Afghan War. The British decided to support Abdur Rahman Khan and the Treaty of Gandamak was signed in 1880, under which Afghanistan ceded control of various frontier areas to British India. The British failed in their objective to maintain a British resident in Kabul but having attained their other geopolitical objectives, the British withdrew.
Durand Line Agreement In October 1882, Amir Abdul Rehman Khan sent a letter to the viceroy of the British Indian Empire for addressing the need of Indo-Afghan border. In 1892, the viceroy, Lord Lansdowne, appointed Major General Frederick Roberts, for settling the issue. However, the amir showed reluctance to this appointment due to the active role of Major General Frederick Roberts in Second Anglo-Afghan War. In 1893, Mortimer Durand was dispatched to Kabul by the Government of India to sign an agreement with Amir Abdur Rahman Khan for fixing the limits of their respective spheres of influence as well as improving diplomatic relations and trade. On 12 November 1893, the Durand Line Agreement was reached. The two parties later camped at Parachinar, a small town near Khost in Afghanistan, which is now in Kurram District of Pakistan, to delineate the frontier.
From the British-Indian side, the camp was attended by Mortimer Durand and Sahibzada Abdul Qayyum, Political Agent Khyber Agency representing the Viceroy of India and Governor General of India. The Afghan side was represented by Sahibzada Abdul Latif and a former governor of Khost Province in Afghanistan, Sardar Shireendil Khan, representing Amir Abdur Rahman Khan. The original 1893 Durand Line Agreement was written in English, with translated copies in Dari.
Demarcation surveys on the Durand Line The initial and primary demarcation, a joint Indo-Afghan survey and mapping effort, covered and took place from 1894 to 1896. Detailed topographic maps locating hundreds of boundary demarcation pillars were soon published and are available in the Survey of India collection at the British Library.The complete 20-page text of these detailed joint Indo-Afghan demarcation surveys is available in several sources.
In 1896, the long stretch from the Kabul River to China, including the Wakhan Corridor, was declared demarcated by virtue of its continuous, distinct watershed ridge-line, leaving only the section near the Khyber Pass to be finally demarcated in the treaty of 22 November 1921, signed by Mahmud Tarzi, "Chief of the Afghan Government for the conclusion of the treaty" and "Henry R. C. Dobbs, Envoy Extraordinary and Chief of the British Mission to Kabul." A very short adjustment to the demarcation was made at Arundu (Arnawai) in 1933–34.
The Pak-Afghan Border was demarcated by three boundary commissions:
Asmar Boundary Commission It was to demarcate the border along Chitral down to Khyber Agency. Under the Clause III of the Durand Line Agreement, Asmar in Kunar Valley as far as Chanak was ceded to Afghanistan, while Bashgal Valley was retained within Chitral. The British government appointed Richard Udny, the Chief Commissioner of Peshawar, while the Afghan side was represented by Ghulam Haidar Khan, the Commander-in-Chief. When the two parties met at Jalalabad on 21 August 1894, Afghans made a claim over Bashgal and Nasrat, which had been placed in Chitral by the Durand Agreement, and the commission could not proceed for over four months. Udny again visited Jalalabad in December, but Khan maintained claims over the territories. Finally, the British Agent at Gilgit, Sir George Scott Robertson, advised Udny to give the areas to the stronger party of the two i.e Afghanistan. Hence a new agreement at Nashagam was signed on 9 April 1895, under which Nasrat and Bashgal, along with other areas, were ceded to Afghanistan. The 210 kilometres long stretch from Nawa Kotal to Hindu Kush was demarcated by the Asmar Boundary Commission. However, it again reached a deadlock when the Afghan side claimed Bajaur as well, and further work stopped.
In 1912, Afghanistan captured an additional area of Chitral along Arandu known as Dokalim. Initially British government protested but finally recognised it as Afghan territory when Sardar Faiz Muhammad Khan and Sir Richard Roy Maconachie signed a treaty on 3 February 1934.
The border along Khyber and Mohmand between Nawa Kotal and Sikaram was only demarcated after the Third Anglo-Afghan War, by a joint commission of Ghulam Nabi Khan of Afghanistan and John Maffey between 23 August and 2 September 1919.
The agreement allowed Emir Abdur Rahman to conquer Kafiristan during his 1895–1896 campaign. On the other hand, the loss of territories had a long lasting effect on Chitral as it lost the only all weather route to Dir. Until the construction of Lowari Tunnel, Chitral remained cut off from rest of the country during winter.
Afghan-Waziristan Boundary Commission It was to demarcate portion from Sikaram to Domandi along Waziristan. The Afghan side was represented by Sardar Sherin Dil Khan, the Deputy Governor of Khost, and Sardar Gul Muhammad Khan, while the British government appointed Lucas White King, H. A. Anderson and J. S. Donald. The demarcation was completed by March 1895, with maps signed and exchanged. Both Emir and the Viceroy ratified the maps and the agreement.
Baluch-Afghan Boundary Commission It was to demarcate the 330 miles long border along Baluchistan from Domandi all the way to Koh Malek-Siah, at the tri-point of Iran, British India and Afghanistan. Emir Abdur Rahman appointed Gul Muhammad Khan while British Indian government was represented by Arthur Henry McMahon. The first section, from Domandi to Chaman, was demarcated and signed by 26 February 1895, with maps exchanged. The second section, from Chaman to Koh Malek-Siah, faced difficulties due to growing Afghan claims. MacMahon made concessions on various points. Finally, the demarcation was completed by 13 May 1896.
Third Anglo-Afghan war and the treaty of Rawalpindi
The Durand Line triggered a long-running controversy between the governments of Afghanistan and British India, especially after the outbreak of the Third Anglo-Afghan War when Afghanistan's capital (Kabul) and its eastern city of Jalalabad were bombed by the No. 31 and No. 114 Squadrons of the British Royal Air Force in May 1919. Afghan rulers reaffirmed in the 1919, 1921, and 1930 treaties to accept the Indo-Afghan frontier.End of Imaginary Durrand Line: North Pakistan belongs to Afghanistan by Wahid MomandJeffery J. Roberts, The Origins of Conflict in Afghanistan (Westport, Conn: Praeger, 2003), p. 121.
Post-1947 events
Pakistan inherited the 1893 agreement and the subsequent 1919 Treaty of Rawalpindi after the partition from the British India in 1947. There has never been a formal ratification between Islamabad and Kabul. Pakistan believes, and international convention under uti possidetis juris supports, the position that it should not require an agreement to set the boundary; courts in several countries around the world and the Vienna Convention have universally upheld via uti possidetis juris that binding bilateral agreements are "passed down" to successor states.Over 90% of present African nations signed both the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) charter and the 1964 Cairo Declaration, both of which "proclaimed the acceptance of colonial borders as the borders between independent states...through the legal principle of uti possidetis." Thus, a unilateral declaration by one party has no effect; boundary changes must be made bilaterally.Hensel, Paul R.; Michael E. Allison and Ahmed Khanani (2006) "Territorial Integrity Treaties, Uti Possidetis, and Armed Conflict over Territory." Presented at the Shambaugh Conference "Building Synergies: Institutions and Cooperation in World Politics," University of Iowa, 13 October 2006.