Afghanistan is situated in a region marked by a range of conflicts, and the interests of different nations, religious and military groups, and drug mafias in the region may run counter to the peacebuilding process in the country. The Kashmir conflict between India and Pakistan, for example, has certainly had an influence on the positions of those two countries on Afghanistan. Militant separatists from the former Soviet republics and China, operating out of Afghan and Pakistani territory, represent another concern. The history of Afghanistan, furthermore, has generated a range of border issues that currently remain unsolved, such as the disagreement on the Durrani line drawing up the border with Pakistan and the question of the use of water from rivers flowing into Iran, such as the Helmand River.
Though Afghanistan has signed a Friendly Neighbourhood Agreement with its neighbouring countries, no formal body currently exists at which these countries can meet to address regional issues.
