Sher Ali, consolidating his rule over Afghanistan,…

Sher Ali, consolidating his rule over Afghanistan, attempts to maintain his nation's equilibrium as a noninvolved buffer state in the great power struggles between Russia in the north and British India in the south.

Sher Ali makes some approaches to the Russians, who have extended their influence in Turkmenistan, acquiring territory bordering on the Amu Darya.

In 1873, Russia establishes a fixed boundary between Afghanistan and its new territories, promising to respect Afghanistan's territorial integrity.