ALLA RICERCA DI UNA SFERA DI INFLUENZA IN ASIA: LA POLITICA ITALIANA IN AFGHANISTAN TRA LE DUE GUERRE (1929-1943)

This essay focuses on the Italian foreign policy in Afghanistan from the fall of Amanullah Khan’s kingdom to the collapse of the fascist regime (1928-1943). It is the continuation of a former article, covering the period from the Treaty of Rawalpindi (1919) to the late 1920s. This further phase of the Italian policy in Afghanistan was more aggressive than the previous one, since a more radical anti-British approach was adopted. While in the past years the Italian representatives concentrated in exploring Afghanistan’s potentialities and in defining Italy’s role in this country, now Afghanistan acquired importance as a vantage point for watching India’s political situation and for coming into contact with expatriate Indian revolutionaries, who escaped from British control and could act openly here. Afghanistan became then the hotbed of joint Italian and Indian anti-British activities, as well as the hub of panislamism. The fact that Amanullah chose Italy as country of his exile points out two aspects: the special link between Afghanistan and Italy, which helps to explain Italy’s special interest in Afghanistan. The presence of the Afghan royalties in Italy after the World War II represents the main line of continuity between past and present Italian interests in Afghanistan. Thanks to its connection with Afghan politics and its good reputation in the country, Rome had a prominent, although less known role in negotiating with Moscow during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. Italy’s special and uninterrupted connection with Afghanistan allowed it to have a space in this highly important strategic area and to be poised and ready to exploit Afghanistan’s immense natural resources, when possible.