‘A collection of treaties, engagements and sanads relating to India and neighbouring countries’ [‎214] (231/578)

214
AFGHAN IS IAN.
One of the most important events in the reign of Amir Abdur Rah-
man Khan was the delimitation of the north-western frontier of
Afghanistan. As far back as 18G9, in the reign of Amir Sher Ali Khan,
negotiations for the purpose of defining the frontier had been begun
between the British and Russian Governments. The proposals of the
British Government were met by counter-proposals bv the Russian
Government : and eventually, in 1872, the British Ambassador at St.
Petersburg, under instructions from Earl Granville, submitted to the
Russian Government the following statement of the territories which
the British Government considered as fully belonging to Afghanistan: —
(1) Badakshan with its dependent district of Wakhan from the Sari-
kul 0 °d s Lake) on the east to the junction of the Kokcha river with
the Oxus (or Penjah) forming the northern boundary of this Afghan
province throughout its entire extent.
(-) Afghan Turkistan, comprising the districts of Kundnz, Khulm
and Balkh, the northern boundary of which would be the line of the Oxus
from the junction of the Kokcha river to the post of Khoja Saleh in
clusive, on the highroad from Bokhara to Balkh. Nothing to be
claimed by the Afghan Amir on the left bank of the Oxus below Khoja
Saleh. J
(3) The internal districts of Akcha, Sar-i-pul, Maim ana, Shibarghan
and Andkhui, the latter of which would be the extreme Afghan frontier
possession to the north-west, the desert beyond belonging to independent
tribes of Turcomans.
(4) The Western Afghan frontier between the dependencies of Herat
and those of the Persian Province of Khorasan was well known and need
not be defined.
rv, ^”* n ? e t7oiti hakoff, on behalf of his Government, questioned whether
the Amir exercised actual sovereignty over Wakhan and Badakhshan.
In regard to the north-western boundary he stated that the Russian
m ormation threw doubt upon the Afghan possession of Akcha, Sar-i-
pul, Maimana, Shibarghan and Andkhui; but added that, if the English
Government adhered to its opinion as to the expediency of including
these places in Afghan territory, Russia would be disposed, as far as
is poition of the boundary was concerned, to accept the line laid
down by the British Government.
In January 1873 the British Government again represented the
grounds on which they based their contention : and this elicited a reply
from Prince Gortchakoft that while, according to Russian view;,
Badakhshan and U akhan still enjoyed a certain degree of independence,
yet, as it was not desired to attach too great an importance to this detail,
we do not refuse to accept the line of boundary laid down bv England”.