This book explores China's role, past, present and future, in Afghanistan. The chaotic withdrawal of the United States from Afghanistan in August 2021 after a 20-year intervention left China as the biggest regional country capable of playing a critical role in future Afghan affairs dominated by the Taliban. What is China’s policy toward Afghanistan after the US withdrawal? How will it seek to increase its influence? To answer these pressing questions, it is necessary to understand how China’s policy toward Afghanistan has evolved historically. This book examines China’s relations with Afghanistan from a combination of theoretical and historical perspectives, highlighting the goals of amity, security, and influence in Chinese policy. This is a study that will be of great value to scholars of Asian politics and geopolitics, and the emerging order in Central Asia.