Afghanistan during WWII

I'm in the process of writing a TL for WWII and I'd like to know if anyone could provide me any information on Afghanistan during the build up and the war.

A few things I already know, but not in much detail is that Zahir Shah was keen to express his desire for neutrality. He refused an invitation to join the Axis and with British assistance put down a rebellion funded by pro-Nazi members of the population in India and Afghanistan.

Can anyone provide me links or more info on this? And anything else I may have missed.
 
When I saw the title I thought you were starting a thread about the USSR invading Afghanistan during WW2 and the US funding the rebels. Although back then it would have been the Brits supplying the rebels most likely. Donkeys carrying in secret shipments of Bren guns and PIATs, all with the serial numbers filed off :)
 

Meerkat92

Banned
If Afghanistan were to join the Axis, how would that work in terms of drawing Soviet and British soldiers away from the important fronts? We could see a slightly longer Barbarossa as some troops get pulled away to pacify the USSR's southern border.
 
If Afghanistan were to join the Axis, how would that work in terms of drawing Soviet and British soldiers away from the important fronts? We could see a slightly longer Barbarossa as some troops get pulled away to pacify the USSR's southern border.

Unlikely. While Germany and Afghanistan were friends, Afghanistan was at least for the last hundred years a buffer state between Russia and Britain. It had no allies and the only reason it was a friend with Germany was because they were helping to industrialise it. There was actually an invite for Afghanistan to join the Axis during Barbarossa the hight of its success. Zahir Shah would have taken the whole of India if he could. His Economics Minister was actually quoted as saying that in British India were 15 million Afghans. The reason he refused was that as a buffer state he would need guaranteed support form Germany. This just wasn't an option for him then. He could have agreed and fought, but Afghanistan would be taken out the moment there was any concentrated effort against them.
 
If the Soviets end up a true Axis power for whatever reason, Afghanistan could serve as a conduit for Soviet troops into India, willingly or otherwise.
 
If the Soviets end up a true Axis power for whatever reason, Afghanistan could serve as a conduit for Soviet troops into India, willingly or otherwise.

Good point, though in all honesty Afghanistan would probably side with whoever was stronger. So in this case they would certainly join the Soviets rather than oppose.
 
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