Illustration: Liu Rui/GT

Afghanistan's presidential ballot ended in an explosion. Yet despite a few injuries caused by the roadside bombing, generally the voting went more smoothly than people expected. The historic election will mark the first non-violent transfer of power ever since the war in Afghanistan in 2001. But whether it will bring new hope for a country mired in warfare and civil conflict for decades remains unknown.

Although confronted by diplomatic challenges including the Diaoyu Islands disputes, the South China Sea spats and the North Korean nuclear issue, Chinese leaders also have to pay attention to the security to the west of the nation. Afghanistan in the post-2014 era is posing another challenge for China's neighborhood diplomacy.

Most observers hold that Afghanistan has achieved a lot in its reconstruction, but are still pessimistic about the nation's future. Since the US started the war in Afghanistan following the September 11 attacks, Washington has been playing a key role in shaping the destiny of the country. But US-Afghanistan relations have been in tumult at the critical moment of the presidential election.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has aired increasing grievances against Washington and demonstrated his refusal to serve as one of its puppets, perhaps because he knew he would step down soon. He publicly criticized the White House for intentionally setting up obstacles in the Afghan peace process, and even implied that the US should claim responsibility for the recent series of explosions just before the election.

Meanwhile, Washington is increasingly discontented with Karzai. As Karzai declined to sign the bilateral security agreement mainly because of the "flirtation" between the US and the Taliban, US President Barack Obama expressed that he was considering a "zero option" that would see all US troops removed from Afghanistan by the end of 2014 even in the absence of a bilateral security agreement.

This undoubtedly signals that the situation in Afghanistan will get bloodier. In December, the Washington Post revealed a US national intelligence assessment which predicts that Afghanistan would likely descend into chaos and that the gains the US and its allies have made during the past three years are likely to have been significantly eroded by 2017.

Afghanistan serves as a hub connecting Central Asia, South Asia and West Asia. Throughout history, it has been an arena where great powers engaged in geopolitical game. The British Empire and the Soviet Union were both plunged into the quagmire of war there. And the war in Afghanistan has become the longest in US history. Therefore, it is widely known as the "graveyard of empires."

In such circumstances, whether China should get more involved in Afghan affairs is a controversial issue.

To safeguard the stability in border areas and economic interests in Afghanistan, Beijing should continue to play a role in relevant issues.

China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region borders Afghanistan through the Wakhan Corridor. When the Taliban was in power, Al Qaeda set up training camps and provided arms equipment for terrorist and separatist groups from Xinjiang.

Abdullah Mansour, head of the Turkestan Islamic Party entrenched at the borders of Afghanistan and Pakistan, has claimed that they planned to carry out more attacks in China.

It is obvious that resurgence of terrorism and extremism will pose a direct threat to China's national security and stability in border areas after the US withdraws troops from Afghanistan.

Furthermore, Beijing holds critical economic interests in Afghanistan. In particular, the China Metallurgical Group Corporation is now engaged in its project at the Aynak copper mine, and China National Petroleum Corporation in the Amu Darya program.

A deteriorating scenario in Afghanistan after 2014 will wield negative influence upon the implementation of China's ambitious plans including the China-Pakistan economic corridor and the "New Silk Road" economic belt.

China has been devoted to more diplomatic efforts to help Afghanistan achieve political reconciliation and national reconstruction. Chinese President Xi Jinping has met with Karzai on many occasions, and Beijing is scheduled to hold the Fourth Foreign Ministerial Conference of the Istanbul Process later this year.

Meanwhile, China is sparing no efforts to improve Afghanistan-Pakistan ties through its special friendship with the latter. In 2014, the fourth China-Afghanistan-Pakistan trilateral dialogue will be held in Beijing.

Although China plays a positive role in resolving the issue of Afghanistan, the rest of the world should refrain from overestimating the influence Beijing can exert considering its diplomatic resources and capacities.

This is a vital year for Afghanistan's transformation. The US, Russia, Pakistan, Iran and other stakeholders have been investing more in the country in a bid to safeguard and expand their influence.

In the light of the unfolding new "great game" in the heart of Asia, how China gives full play to a prudent and flexible role in Afghanistan constitutes a prominent challenge in its diplomatic endeavor.

The author is a research fellow with the Charhar Institute and an adjunct fellow with the Center for International and Strategic Studies, Peking University. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn