Cheered on by the U.S. and other Western governments, which see Asia's giant as a potentially stabilizing force, China could prove the ultimate winner in Afghanistan having shed no blood and not much aid.

NPR: Eyeing Rich Bounty, China In Line For Afghan Role

Despite the rivers of blood that have been shed, the mayors on both sides of the border, as well as in neighbouring Hungary, know each other and want to talk about practical matters like how to manage rivers of the other kind.

ECONOMIST: The Danube��s bonny, bloody banks