The Governor General of British India supplied Dost Mohammad Khan with 4,000 muskets sent to Kandahar, as well as ammunition and gunpowder, and 500,000 rupees in response to the Persian siege of Herat and another Bukharan expedition conducted into the Chahar Wilayat.

[8] As the sepoy mutiny began in India, Dost Mohammad Khan faced pressure internally, and externally and from Bukhara to wage Jihad and reclaim Peshawar from the British.

[11] The offer to Dost Mohammad was very tempting, and he decided to summon a private meeting with senior family members to discuss the benefits and consequences of such an invasion.

"[13] Henry Lawrence, the British resident in Lahore, having heard of the news of Dost Mohammad's decision to uphold his neutrality, perceived it as a "god send".

[14] According to Jonathan Lee, Henry Lawrence remarked: "It is clear that, if we had been on bad terms just now with Kabul, we should have lost, first Peshawar and then the Punjab and all India would have reeled under the blow.

"[14]Lord Roberts view, which was widely agreed on, stated: "Had Dost Mohammad turned against the British, I do not see how any part of the country north of Bengal that could be saved.