‍Central Asia and The Caucasus Journal

Abstract The Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project, as one of the geoeconomic initiatives in Central and South Asia, has the potential to influence regional geopolitical equations. Afghanistan's transit position in this project makes the country a key point in connecting Central Asian gas resources to the high-consumption markets of South Asia. By posing the main question, "What geopolitical opportunities and challenges does the dynamism of the TAPI project create for Afghanistan?", the present study seeks to examine the geopolitical capacities and obstacles facing this country in the process of realizing the TAPI project. The research hypothesis is based on the fact that although the TAPI project can bring important benefits such as benefiting from transit income, attracting foreign investment, creating employment, strengthening economic ties with neighboring countries, and enhancing Afghanistan's geopolynomics; But on the other hand, challenges such as insecurity along the project route, lack of adequate technical and institutional infrastructure, the Taliban's ambiguous and inefficient political structure, competition between regional and trans-regional actors, and doubts about Turkmenistan's gas capacity have posed serious obstacles to the full realization of these opportunities. This research was conducted using a qualitative method and a descriptive-analytical approach, using reliable library, documentary, and digital resources.

Abstract In the multipolar system with the supremacy of a single pole, international agendas are usually determined by the hegemonic power. The hegemonic power has also more freedom of act in determination of goals, interests and countering with its oppositions in a comparison with bipolar and multipolar structures. An example of the mentioned composition of international agendas can be seen in the area of determining energy corridors. TAPI pipeline is a good instance. This pipeline has been proposed as an alternative of the peace pipeline. Despite its strategic and geo-economic situation of Iran, this project tries to exclude Iran from regional and international political equations. This literature addresses the following main question: Which factors lead to the suspension of the executive trend of the peace pipeline and its being replaced by TAPI pipeline? In order to answer the mentioned question, the following hypothesis is used: Structural pressures of the international system through “socialization” and “competition”, and their impact on decisions and policy makings of those countries that participated in the TAPI gas pipeline project, are the main cause for the suspension of the executive trend of peace pipeline and its being replaced by TAPI pipeline.