The World War that began on August 1, 1914, changed the political situation in almost all the states of the Middle East. Afghanistan did not participate in the fighting, but both warring factions sought to win it over: Germany and Turkey persistently pushed Emir Habibullah Khan to oppose Russia and England, and they, in turn, tried to keep the Kabul ruler within the established system of relations and prevent him from joining the central powers. Key words: great Powers, World War I, Russian-British relations, German influence, Persia, Afghanistan. In 1915-1916, the German-Turkish military-diplomatic mission of O. Niedermayer and W. von Hentig was stationed in Afghanistan. Soviet researchers P. I. Khoteev, M. A. Babakhodzhaev, N. Ravich, and K. Sokolov-Strakhov, as well as English and American authors L. Adamek, R. Stewart, W. Fraser-Tytler, and P. Saike wrote about it in their time [Babakhodzhaev, 1960; Ravich, 1933; Sokolov-Strakhov, 1929; Khoteev, 1977; Adamec, 1965; Fraser-Tytler, 1950; Stewart, 1973; Sykes, 1940]. However, they focused on studying the activities of the German-Turkish emissaries after their arrival in Afghanistan, and therefore all the events immediately preceding their appearance there are still poorly understood. Meanwhile, the answers to questions about how and why agents of Germany and Turkey ended up on Afghan territory in 1915 are very important for understanding the situation in the region as a whole, as well as clarifying the nature and features of the development of Anglo-Russian relations on the Afghan issue during the First World War. August 8, 1914-Viceroy of India Ch. Harding sent a message to Habibullah Khan, in which he announced the outbreak of war in Europe and recommended that in the current situation "to maintain absolute neutrality, taking special measures for the security of the state border" [Stewart, 1973, p. 7]. The Kabul ruler followed this advice. On August 19, he replied: Harding, explaining his decision as follows:: "W ... Читать далее