Since 11th September, Afganistan has dominated the news, as it often did during the Soviet occupation (1979–89). But even in the 19th and early 20th centuries, when its mountain ranges provided the arena where much of the Great Game was played out, Afganistan was the focal point of East-West relations. Squeezed between four empires - Russia, China, India and Persia - it has a tortured history that provides an extraordinary glimpse ointo the patterns of world movements. Today Afghanistan sits at the pivot of a region where a new Great Game is taking shape as the US positions itself into becoming a major player in Central Asia. This modern history of Afghanistan is aimed at historians, policy makers and all those interested in the state of the world today.