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Coordinates: 30°55′20″N 66°26′41″E / 30.92222°N 66.44472°E / 30.92222; 66.44472
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{{Infobox settlement
{{Infobox settlement
| name = Wesh-Chaman Border Crossing
| name = Friendship Gate
| native_name = {{nq|چمن باڈر کراسنگ}}
| native_name = {{nq|چمن باڈر کراسنگ}}
| native_name_lang =
| native_name_lang =
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| image_skyline = Chaman City.jpg
| image_skyline = Chaman City.jpg
| imagesize = 300px
| imagesize = 300px
| image_caption = Chaman Border Gate between Afghanistan and Pakistan
| image_caption = Friendship Gate between [[Pakistan]] and [[Afghanistan]]
| image_flag =
| image_flag =
| image_seal =
| image_seal =
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| subdivision_type2 = Districts
| subdivision_type2 = Districts
| subdivision_name2 = [[Chaman District|Chaman]]<br>[[Spin Boldak District|Spin Boldak]]
| subdivision_name2 = [[Chaman District|Chaman]]<br>[[Spin Boldak District|Spin Boldak]]
| subdivision_type3 = Control
| subdivision_name3 = {{flag|Pakistan}}<br>{{flagicon|Afghanistan|Taliban}} [[Taliban]]
<!-- Area --------------------->
<!-- Area --------------------->
| unit_pref =
| unit_pref =
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}}
}}


[[File:Khalid Wynne.JPG|thumb|[[United States Army|U.S. Army]] [[General|Gen.]] [[Stanley McChrystal]], commander of the [[International Security Assistance Force]] at the time, is meeting with [[Pakistan Army|Pakistani army]] [[Lieutenant General|Lt. Gen.]] [[Khalid Wynne]], commander of Southern Command, at the Friendship Gate border crossing, in [[Spin Boldak]], [[Afghanistan]].]]
[[File:Khalid Wynne.JPG|thumb|[[United States Army|U.S. Army]] [[General|Gen.]] [[Stanley McChrystal]], [[International Security Assistance Force|ISAF]] Commander at the time, is meeting with [[Pakistan Army|Pakistani army]] [[Lieutenant General|Lt. Gen.]] [[Khalid Wynne]], near the Friendship Gate in [[Spin Boldak]], [[Afghanistan]].]]
The '''Friendship Gate''', also known from the Pakistani side as '''Chaman-Spin Boldak Gate''' and from the Afghan side as '''Spin Boldak-Chaman Gate''',<ref name="Samsour">{{cite news |first=Amin |last=Samsour |title=Pakistani forces harass, extort passengers at Friendship Gate |url=https://pajhwok.com/2023/02/11/pakistani-forces-harass-passengers-at-spin-boldak-chaman-gate/ |date=11 February 2023 |work=Pajhwok Afghan News |access-date=2023-02-11 |language=en}}</ref> is located on the [[Durand Line]] (Afghanistan-Pakistan border) between the [[border town]]s of [[Chaman]] in [[Pakistan]] and [[Spin Boldak]] in [[Afghanistan]]. It serves as one of the [[border control]] and [[border checkpoint|checkpoints]] of the two countries.
The '''Wesh–Chaman border crossing''' is one of the major international [[border crossing]]s between [[Afghanistan]] and [[Pakistan]]. Located on the [[Durand Line|Pak-Afghan]] border, it leads north from the town of [[Chaman]], [[Chaman District]], [[Balochistan, Pakistan|Balochistan]] into [[Wesh, Afghanistan|Wesh]] in [[Spin Boldak District]], [[Kandahar Province|Kandahar]] province. More generally, it links the two provincial capitals: [[Quetta]] and [[Kandahar]]. At least 10 thousand peoples cross this border on the daily basis having businesses in [[Wesh, Afghanistan|Wesh]] and return home in the evening. <ref>{{cite news |last1=Akhtar |first1=Saadullah |title=Thousands of Afghans enter Pakistan via Chaman border crossing |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/8/17/thousands-of-afghans-enter-pakistan-through-chaman-border-point |access-date=29 November 2021 |work=www.aljazeera.com |agency=Al Jazeera |language=en}}</ref> On 14 July 2021, the border crossing was captured by [[Taliban]] forces as part of the [[2021 Taliban offensive]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Sediqi |first1=Abdul |last2=Hakimi |first2=Orooj |title=Afghan Taliban seize border crossing with Pakistan in major advance |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/taliban-claims-control-key-afghan-border-crossing-with-pakistan-2021-07-14/ |access-date=2 August 2021 |work=Reuters |date=14 July 2021}}</ref>


A brick, double-arched Friendship Gate, rising three stories tall, was erected in 2003. The gate facing towards Balochistan bears the words "Proud Pakistani" and "Pakistan First".<ref name=NYT20100204>{{cite news |first=Souad |last=Mekhennet |author2=Oppel, Richard A. |title=Even Where Pakistani Law Exists, Taliban Find a Porous Border |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/05/world/asia/05baluch.html |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=2010-02-04 |access-date=2010-02-04}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Muddassir |last=Rizvi |title=Suspicion of Pakistan runs deep |url=http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/EL09Df04.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031210072059/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/EL09Df04.html |url-status=unfit |archive-date=2003-12-10 |publisher=[[Asia Times Online]] |date=2003-12-09 |access-date=2010-02-04}}</ref><ref name=Vanity>{{cite magazine |first=Janine Di |last=Giovanni |title=Pakistan's Phantom Border |url=http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2008/07/pakistan200807?printable=true |magazine=[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]] |date=2008-06-10 |access-date=2010-02-05}} Note: Photograph of gate by Alex Majoli on p. 1 of story; account of visit on p. 5.</ref> Its official hours run from morning to sunset, though smuggling may continue at night.<ref name=Vanity/>
The Friendship Gate was built by Pakistan in 2003,<ref>{{cite news |first=Muddassir |last=Rizvi |title=Suspicion of Pakistan runs deep |url=http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/EL09Df04.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031210072059/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/EL09Df04.html |url-status=unfit |archive-date=2003-12-10 |publisher=Asia Times |date=2003-12-09 |access-date=2010-02-04}}</ref> and is made of bricks. Facing Chaman, it bears the words "Proud Pakistani" and "Pakistan First".<ref name=NYT20100204>{{cite news |first=Souad |last=Mekhennet |author2=Oppel, Richard A. |title=Even Where Pakistani Law Exists, Taliban Find a Porous Border |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/05/world/asia/05baluch.html |publisher=The New York Times |date=2010-02-04 |access-date=2010-02-04}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Thousands cross border after Spin Boldak opens for one day only |url=https://www.ariananews.af/thousands-cross-border-after-spin-boldak-opens-for-one-day-only/ |date=August 9, 2020 |work=Ariana News |access-date=2023-02-11 |language=en}}</ref><ref name=Vanity>{{cite news |first=Janine Di |last=Giovanni |title=Pakistan's Phantom Border |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2008/07/pakistan200807 |magazine=[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]] |date=2008-06-10 |access-date=2010-02-05}}</ref> Around 20,000 people cross the gate on daily basis,<ref name="Samsour"/><ref>{{cite news |first=Saadullah |last=Akhtar |title=Thousands of Afghans enter Pakistan via Chaman border crossing |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/8/17/thousands-of-afghans-enter-pakistan-through-chaman-border-point |access-date=29 November 2021 |work=www.aljazeera.com |agency=Al Jazeera |language=en}}</ref> which include residents of [[Quetta]] in Pakistan and [[Kandahar]] in Afghanistan. Its official hours have been reported in 2008 from morning to sunset, though smuggling may continue at night.<ref name=Vanity/>


On 14 July 2021, Spin Boldak fell to forces of the [[Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan]] as part of the [[2021 Taliban offensive]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Sediqi |first1=Abdul |last2=Hakimi |first2=Orooj |title=Afghan Taliban seize border crossing with Pakistan in major advance |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/taliban-claims-control-key-afghan-border-crossing-with-pakistan-2021-07-14/ |access-date=2 August 2021 |work=Reuters |date=14 July 2021}}</ref> It has been reported recently that trucks can cross the border 24-hours every day.<ref>{{cite news |title=Torkham, Spin Boldak crossings to stay open 24/7 |url=https://pajhwok.com/2022/07/21/torkham-spin-boldak-crossings-to-stay-open-24-7/ |date=22 July 2022 |work=Pajhwok Afghan News |access-date=2023-02-11 |language=en}}</ref>
==United States military presence==

⚫
The Wesh-Chaman border crossing has been used by [[International Security Assistance Force|international forces]] (ISAF) in Afghanistan as part of a major supply route stretching from the [[Port of Karachi]] to Kandahar,<ref>{{cite web |first=Bill |last=Roggio |title=Chaman border crossing closed to NATO traffic |url=http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2009/09/chaman_border_crossi.php |website=[[The Long War Journal]] |date=2009-09-09 |access-date=2010-02-04}}</ref> with roughly 60 to 100 trucks traversing Chaman daily.<ref name=NYT20100204/> On January 18, 2010, ISAF commander General [[Stanley A. McChrystal]] visited the site after discussing the crossing's efficiency with Pakistani authorities.<ref>{{cite news |title=US troops surge in Afghanistan McChrystal inspects Chaman point to quicken equipment shipments |url=http://pakobserver.net/201001/20/news/topstories06.asp |newspaper=[[Pakistan Observer]] |date=2010-01-20 |access-date=2010-02-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100703010717/https://pakobserver.net/201001/20/news/topstories06.asp |archive-date=2010-07-03 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=McChrystal visits Chaman border |url=http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/19-Jan-2010/McChrystal-visits-Chaman-border |newspaper=[[The Nation (Pakistani newspaper)|The Nation]] |date=2010-01-19 |access-date=2010-02-05}}</ref> A US-run [[Forward operating base]] (FOB) was located in Spin Boldak, which monitored the border crossing along with the [[Afghan Border Police]] and the [[Afghan National Army]].
==NATO's presence and withdrawl==
{{Further|Train Advise Assist Command – South}}
⚫
In addition to Afghanistan and Pakistan using it, the border crossing for trucks next to the Friendship Gate was also used in the past by [[International Security Assistance Force|NATO forces]] based in [[Spin Boldak District]] as one of their supply routes stretching from the [[Port of Karachi]] to Kandahar and other places in Afghanistan, with roughly 60 to 100 trucks traversing daily.<ref name=NYT20100204/> On January 18, 2010, [[Stanley A. McChrystal]] visited the Friendship Gate after discussing the checkpoint's efficiency with members of Pakistan's military.<ref>{{cite news |title=US troops surge in Afghanistan McChrystal inspects Chaman point to quicken equipment shipments |url=http://pakobserver.net/201001/20/news/topstories06.asp |newspaper=Pakistan Observer |date=2010-01-20 |access-date=2010-02-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100703010717/https://pakobserver.net/201001/20/news/topstories06.asp |archive-date=2010-07-03 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=McChrystal visits Chaman border |url=http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/19-Jan-2010/McChrystal-visits-Chaman-border |newspaper=[[The Nation (Pakistani newspaper)|The Nation]] |date=2010-01-19 |access-date=2010-02-05}}</ref> A US-run [[Forward operating base]] (FOB) was located about {{cvt|8|mi}} from the Friendship Gate, in Spin Boldak District. It has long been closed and all NATO forces have left Afghanistan.

== See also ==
* [[Afghanistan–Pakistan relations]]
* [[Land border crossings of Afghanistan]]
* [[Land border crossings of Pakistan]]


==References==
==References==
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==External links==
==External links==
*{{YouTube|xWblBB7YymM|Chaman - Spin boldak Gate}} (Oct. 21, 2022)
{{commonscatinline|Wesh–Chaman border crossing}}
*{{YouTube|Wef52MLiyO0|The first-ever flag-lowering ceremony at The Friendship Gate at the Pak-Afghan border}} (Nov. 19, 2016)


{{DEFAULTSORT:Wesh-Chaman border crossing}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spin Boldak-Chaman Gate}}
[[Category:Afghanistan–Pakistan border crossings]]
[[Category:Afghanistan–Pakistan border crossings]]
[[Category:Geography of Kandahar Province]]
[[Category:Geography of Balochistan, Pakistan]]
[[Category:Geography of Balochistan, Pakistan]]
[[Category:Chaman District]]
[[Category:Chaman District]]
[[Category:Spin Boldak District]]

Revision as of 13:52, 12 February 2023

Friendship Gate
چمن باڈر کراسنگ
Friendship Gate between Pakistan and Afghanistan
Friendship Gate between Pakistan and Afghanistan
Friendship Gate is located in Balochistan, Pakistan
Friendship Gate
Friendship Gate
Friendship Gate is located in Pakistan
Friendship Gate
Friendship Gate
Friendship Gate is located in Asia
Friendship Gate
Friendship Gate
Coordinates: 30°55′20″N 66°26′41″E / 30.92222°N 66.44472°E / 30.92222; 66.44472
Countries Pakistan
 Afghanistan
ProvincesBalochistan
Kandahar
DistrictsChaman
Spin Boldak
Time zoneUTC+5 (PST)
U.S. Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, ISAF Commander at the time, is meeting with Pakistani army Lt. Gen. Khalid Wynne, near the Friendship Gate in Spin Boldak, Afghanistan.

The Friendship Gate, also known from the Pakistani side as Chaman-Spin Boldak Gate and from the Afghan side as Spin Boldak-Chaman Gate,[1] is located on the Durand Line (Afghanistan-Pakistan border) between the border towns of Chaman in Pakistan and Spin Boldak in Afghanistan. It serves as one of the border control and checkpoints of the two countries.

The Friendship Gate was built by Pakistan in 2003,[2] and is made of bricks. Facing Chaman, it bears the words "Proud Pakistani" and "Pakistan First".[3][4][5] Around 20,000 people cross the gate on daily basis,[1][6] which include residents of Quetta in Pakistan and Kandahar in Afghanistan. Its official hours have been reported in 2008 from morning to sunset, though smuggling may continue at night.[5]

On 14 July 2021, Spin Boldak fell to forces of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan as part of the 2021 Taliban offensive.[7] It has been reported recently that trucks can cross the border 24-hours every day.[8]

NATO's presence and withdrawl

Further information: Train Advise Assist Command – South

In addition to Afghanistan and Pakistan using it, the border crossing for trucks next to the Friendship Gate was also used in the past by NATO forces based in Spin Boldak District as one of their supply routes stretching from the Port of Karachi to Kandahar and other places in Afghanistan, with roughly 60 to 100 trucks traversing daily.[3] On January 18, 2010, Stanley A. McChrystal visited the Friendship Gate after discussing the checkpoint's efficiency with members of Pakistan's military.[9][10] A US-run Forward operating base (FOB) was located about 8 mi (13 km) from the Friendship Gate, in Spin Boldak District. It has long been closed and all NATO forces have left Afghanistan.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Samsour, Amin (11 February 2023). "Pakistani forces harass, extort passengers at Friendship Gate". Pajhwok Afghan News. Retrieved 2023-02-11.
  2. ^ Rizvi, Muddassir (2003-12-09). "Suspicion of Pakistan runs deep". Asia Times. Archived from the original on 2003-12-10. Retrieved 2010-02-04.
  3. ^ a b Mekhennet, Souad; Oppel, Richard A. (2010-02-04). "Even Where Pakistani Law Exists, Taliban Find a Porous Border". The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-02-04.
  4. ^ "Thousands cross border after Spin Boldak opens for one day only". Ariana News. August 9, 2020. Retrieved 2023-02-11.
  5. ^ a b Giovanni, Janine Di (2008-06-10). "Pakistan's Phantom Border". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 2010-02-05.
  6. ^ Akhtar, Saadullah. "Thousands of Afghans enter Pakistan via Chaman border crossing". www.aljazeera.com. Al Jazeera. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  7. ^ Sediqi, Abdul; Hakimi, Orooj (14 July 2021). "Afghan Taliban seize border crossing with Pakistan in major advance". Reuters. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
  8. ^ "Torkham, Spin Boldak crossings to stay open 24/7". Pajhwok Afghan News. 22 July 2022. Retrieved 2023-02-11.
  9. ^ "US troops surge in Afghanistan McChrystal inspects Chaman point to quicken equipment shipments". Pakistan Observer. 2010-01-20. Archived from the original on 2010-07-03. Retrieved 2010-02-05.
  10. ^ "McChrystal visits Chaman border". The Nation. 2010-01-19. Retrieved 2010-02-05.
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