I've been reading about the Great Game, a name that was given to the rivalry between the Russian and the British, that begun in the 19th century. As Russia was expanded south and east its lands encroached on the Indian subcontinent which was under British influence. The country where the two empires met was Afghanistan, during this game a great deal of the borders were defined, often to favor the British interest of creating a buffer state between Indian territory and Russia. Much of this history has a an influence on what is happening in modern day Afghanistan.
