Афғанстан-Қытай шекарасындағы Вахан дәлізі

Narrow strip of land in northeastern Afghanistan

The Wakhan Corridor (; دالان واخان) is a narrow strip of territory located within the Badakhshan province of Afghanistan. This corridor stretches eastward, connecting Afghanistan to Xinjiang, China. It also separates the Gorno Badakhshan Autonomous Region of Tajikistan in the north from northern Pakistan in the south. This high mountain valley serves as the source of both the Panj and Pamir rivers, which converge to form the larger Amu River. For countless centuries, a vital trade route has traversed this valley, facilitating the movement of travelers to and from East, South, and Central Asia. The corridor was formed after an 1893 agreement between Mortimer Durand of the British Raj and Emir Abdur Rahman Khan of Afghanistan, creating the Durand Line. This narrow strip acted as a buffer zone between the Russian Empire and the British Empire (the regions of Russian Turkestan, now in Tajikistan and the northern part of British Raj, now in Pakistan). Its eastern end bordered China's Xinjiang region, then claimed by the Qing dynasty. The corridor is in the Wakhan District of Afghanistan's Badakhshan province. As of 2020, it had 17,167 residents. The northern part of the Wakhan, populated by the Wakhi and Pamiri people, is also referred to as the Pamir. The closest major airport for the residents to use is Fayzabad Airport in the city of Fayzabad to the west, which can be reached by a road network.

At its western entrance, near the Afghan town of Ishkashim, the corridor is wide. The easternmost pass, as indicated above, is the Wakhjir Pass, which connects to China and is the only border connection between that country and Afghanistan. The corridor is higher in the east than in the west; (the Wakhjir Pass is in elevation) and descends to about at Ishkashim. The Wakhjir River emerges from an ice cave on the Afghan side of the Wakhjir Pass and flows west, joining the Bozai Darya near the village of Bozai Gumbaz to form the Wakhan River. The Wakhan River then joins the Pamir River near Kala i Panj to form the Panj River, which then flows out of the Wakhan Corridor at Ishkashim. The Chinese consider Chalachigu Valley, the valley east of Wakhjir Pass on the Chinese side connecting Taghdumbash Pamir, to be part of the Wakhan Corridor. The high mountain valley is about long. This valley, through which the Tashkurgan River flows, is generally about wide and less than at its narrowest point. This entire valley on the Chinese side is closed to visitors; however, local residents and herders from the area are permitted access.