As advertised by Beijing, the “One Belt, One Road” (OBOR) initiative, China’s grand scheme for knitting a network of roads, ports, railways and other links from East China through Southeast and South and Central Asia all the way to Europe exceeds both in scope and ambition the Marshall Plan used to rebuild Europe after World War II.

The “belt” of land-based links is paired with a 21st century “Maritime Silk Road” stretching from Australia to Zanzibar. Chinese President Xi Jinping launched the OBOR initiative in 2013, two years after then-U.S. President Barack Obama initiated the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trading bloc across the Pacific region. Now that Obama successor Donald Trump has carried out his pledge to withdraw from the TPP, the expectations are that Chinese-backed strategies like the OBOR will gain momentum. China experts say that this is a positive development, but there is skepticism over whether Beijing will follow through with the gargantuan amount of funding needed, whether big debt-financed projects bankrolled by China will benefit the recipient countries, and whether those projects will actually make sense .

隨者塔利班再度重返阿富汗執政,封塵將近1500多年之久的瓦罕走廊也就是說再度引起人們的眼光,許多西方國家人士其中包括旅遊探險的團體與個人,已經磨拳擦掌計劃到阿富汗的瓦罕走廊尋求新的旅程,並且包括開發未來的旅遊業務,事實上在美國侵佔阿富汗20年裡,有少數的西方國家探險人士,經由巴基斯坦境內穿越邊境,進入阿富汗的瓦罕走廊,進行所謂的探險旅遊也就是說探勘,他們發佈旅遊記錄照片錄影帶於網站或是Blog.引起一些注意的眼光事實上,從古自今極為少數的人居住此處,經商往來也是古代絲綢之路的一段驚險旅程,因為2500多年來，瓦罕走廊一直是瓦基人（Wakhi）的家園，現在約有1.2萬人住在這裏附近的河谷地區。雖然大多數阿富汗人是保守的遜尼派穆斯林，但瓦基人是屬於伊斯蘭教什葉派分支的伊斯瑪儀派.

數百年來，瓦罕走廊一直是絲綢之路商人的重要通道。絲綢之路是公元前一世紀和二世紀開始的一條連接中國和地中海的貿易路線。「那些商人攜帶著中國絲綢、波斯白銀、羅馬黃金和巴達赫尚地區開採的阿富汗天青石。我們發現了詳細描述這條路歷史的岩石藝壁畫，畫著駱駝排成一行行的貿易商隊。」旅行者和朝聖者追隨商人的腳步。

中國最早的記錄是東晉時代的法顯,從瓦罕走廊經過到天筑取佛經訪問高僧,到了大唐王朝玄奘又從此處經過到天筑取佛經訪問高僧,西遊記的記載玄奘在此收服沙梧淨,據說牠就是這裡的河流內的妖怪,被玄奘收服陪伴同行.

馬可·波羅（Marco Polo）在13世紀去中國時曾路過這裏，亞歷山大大帝（Alexander the Great）與成吉思汗西征的大軍都從此地瓦罕走廊經過去征服那些必須被征服的地方與疆域.

.

生活純普的韻律瓦基人主要務農，在走廊的半乾旱條件下種植小麥、大麥、豌豆、土豆、蘋果和杏樹；他們的田地由山上冰川的融水補給。較富裕的家庭有綿羊和山羊，還有一些駱駝、氂牛、馬和驢。「每年6月，瓦基人都會把他們的牲畜帶到海拔4500米的夏季牧場，在那裏，動物們在肥沃的草地上長得膘肥體壯，」 「這種遷移被稱為『kuch』。『Chinir』，這是我們在8月初慶祝大麥收獲開始的節日。在阿富汗的城鎮，每天的五個祈禱構成一天，但在這裏，我們感覺與土地密切聯繫在一起，我們每天祈禱時，生活更多圍繞著田野、季節和自然。」

地球上最偏遠的走廊::瓦罕走廊在馬扎里沙里夫以東約600公里處，在文化和地理上都是一個與該國其他地區截然不同的世界。這個350公里長的狹長地帶在巴達赫尚（Badakhshan）地區，位於世界三大山脈的交匯處：興都庫什山脈（Hindu Kush）、喀喇昆侖山脈（Karakoram）和帕米爾山脈（Pamirs）也被稱為帕米爾結（Pamir Knot）。

「這裏幾乎沒人住，而且很難去；幾乎沒有人知道它的存在。

無疑是整個亞洲最遙遠、最美麗的地方之一。」

.Some 600km to the east of Mazar-e Sharif, the Wakhan Corridor (pictured) is a world apart from the rest of the country, both culturally and geographically. This 350km-long panhandle, in the region of Badakhshan, sits at the convergence of three of the worlds major mountain ranges: the Hindu Kush, the Karakoram and the Pamirs – known as the Pamir Knot. "This is about as far away from the noise, the traffic and the muezzins call to prayer of urban Afghanistan as you can get," said James Willcox of untamedborders.com, one of just a few adventure travel companies in the world that arranges trips to the region. "It is barely habited and hard to get to; few people even know of its existence. Its undoubtedly one of the remotest, and most beautiful places in the whole of Asia.

瓦罕走廊從古自今不曾被世人遺忘,隨著中國一帶一路戰略的不斷推進，中國方面及西方國家很多人曾提出不少設想，建設一條陸上中歐物流運輸渠道，通過瓦罕走廊修建一條高速公路或是鐵路，經過阿富汗可抵達西亞，或穿過伊朗可到達歐洲。達成一帶一路西進的戰略計劃,如此一來偉大的新成吉思汗西征即將實現又展現歷史上新的一頁.

.

While Afghanistans security situation dictates that much of the country is off-limits to foreigners, the corridors relative safety, alongside its pristine mountain scenery and well-preserved Wakhi culture, has seen its appeal with off-the-beaten-trackers grow markedly in recent years. "At first there were only a handful of visitors," said Ade Summers, an adventure guide who has led nine expeditions to the Wakhan. ". Its a privilege to visit somewhere so untouched by mainstream tourism, where you can engage with people who still relish their traditional way of life. As you journey along the Wakhan, not only is it very beautiful, every step you take is like turning the pages of a fascinating history book." 

.

A centuries-old tradition.One of the most distinctive traditions of the Wakhan is the centuries-old game of buzkhasi, sometimes described as rugby on horseback with the body of a goat as a ball. Thought to be an early pre-cursor to polo, buzkashi has no rules and no sides. There is certainly no sense of "fair play", as competitors will punch and whip each other in an effort to steal the goat, and broken bones are not uncommon. "The Wakhi villages love to play each other, especially at Nawruz, which is the Afghan New Year," Ziahee explained. "But here its different to other parts of Afghanistan. Elsewhere, buzkashi is more political – put on to show the power of the elite, or by a politician as a way to win votes. Here, it is all about the competition and the community. It is one of many things that makes the Wakhan so unique.

.

.

.

.瓦罕走廊（Wakhan Corridor）又稱阿富汗走廊、瓦罕帕米爾，是阿富汗與中國接壤的狹長地帶，位於帕米爾高原南端和興都庫什山脈北段之間。歷史上這裏曾是古絲綢之路的一部分，也是中華文明與中亞和印度文明交流的重要通道。如今阿富汗又重新回到塔利班掌權,他們希望得到中國的援助與重建經濟與基礎建設工程,至於是否重新開放瓦罕走廊（Wakhan Corridor）,甚至於傳聞中國要新建鐵路或是公陸,穿越瓦罕走廊（Wakhan Corridor）打通一帶一陸將阿富汗直接連接中亞五國,直通歐洲,當然中國早已考慮是否將中巴經濟走廊計劃延伸至阿富汗必須觀察照看由塔利班主持阿富汗的政局是否穩定下來,視實際狀況中國才能採取行動,換句話說中國才是最後的掌權人與發話者.

因為中國與阿富汗兩國在狹長的瓦罕走廊東端相毗鄰，邊界線只有92.45公里。戰略意義阿富汗地處亞洲的心臟，毗鄰中亞、南亞和東亞，其戰略位置使它在中亞安全問題上扮演舉足輕重的角色。作為東西方交通的要衝，以及南亞次大陸的略屏障，阿富汗歷史上一直是兵家必爭之地、民族遷移之途。

許多古代民族都曾在這裏留下歷史，而近代19世紀以後，阿富汗成為英、俄兩大帝國中間的緩衝國。作為古絲綢之路上的重要中樞，阿富汗在如今中國大舉推廣的「一帶一路」計劃中的意義顯而易見。

瓦罕走廊的歷史與中國和阿富汗的現實聯繫.隨著塔利班重新再度執政，國際社會也在密切關注中國下一步的舉動。連接中國與阿富汗的瓦罕走廊再次受到人們關注。

帕米爾高原南端和興都庫什山脈中的瓦罕走廊（Wakhan Corridor，又稱阿富汗走廊）是中國西部對外陸路關鍵通道之一。從地理上講，它也是中國一帶一路上的一個關鍵節點。瓦罕走廊到底重要性何在？為何說中國對阿富汗的影響與這條走廊密切相關？

四國接壤瓦罕走廊是阿富汗與中國接壤的狹長地帶，歷史上曾是古絲綢之路的一部分，是古代中華文明、印度文明、波斯文明和歐洲文明交流的重要陸路通道。古往今來也都是兵家必爭之地歷史的機遇使得瓦罕走廊（Wakhan Corridor)又將迎接新的局勢與發展的機會,屆時大貨車,大卡車甚至於長途旅遊巴士,將陸續的穿梭於瓦罕走廊（Wakhan Corridor)。行成絲路上最繁忙的路段,因為24小時的旅客及車隊將源源不絕的湧進,行成龐大的消費市場與貨物集散地,亞洲基礎開發投資銀行AIIB.業已評估國際客運及貨運業者,將在瓦罕走廊（Wakhan Corridor)設置中點轉運站,換句話說古代絲綢之路的客棧,商店,飯店,等商務活動將會活蹦亂跳的在此重現.

..

.

2009年中國實施新疆與一帶一路計劃，美國希望中國開放瓦罕走廊，以作為駐阿富汗美軍後勤基地。但中國最終沒有同意。筆者之前 Hsr 123 blog.曾經報導瓦罕走廊,Wakhan Corridor 的故事,敘述當時美軍與塔利班遊擊隊在瓦罕走廊 Wakhan Corridor的戰事.美軍慘敗經由瓦罕走廊撤退至巴基斯坦,但是美國否認..

.