Archive for February 20th, 2021

Uzbekistan Prioritizes Pakistani Over Iranian Ports

Accessing seaports at lower costs and shorter distances is a decades-old issues Tashkent is trying to solve, Pakistani ports might be the answer. Tashkent has been working on creating shorter and cheaper transportation corridors to access seaports since the country’s independence. On February 2, the first trilateral talks were held among officials from Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. The territory of […]

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Indian Defense Minister Outlines Ladakh Disengagement Plan

Rajnath Singh’s speech at the upper house of the Indian parliament described a plan to create a buffer zone in the north bank of Pangong Lake. Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh confirmed in the upper house of the parliament on February 11 that Indian and Chinese forces have begun mutual disengagement in the north and south banks of Pangong Lake, […]

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Did China Build a Spy Network in Kabul?

Amid murky allegations of contact with the Haqqani Network, the life of one Chinese national in Kabul comes under scrutiny. Shoaib* knew Xu* as a Chinese language teacher at a local private school. Xu taught Chinese language at his rented apartment in Kart-e-Char, a middle-class neighborhood of Kabul. Shoaib, an Afghan who wanted to learn Chinese language, met Xu on […]

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Seven policemen killed in IED explosion in Faryab

At least seven policemen were killed in an IED explosion in the Almar district of Faryab province, police said in a statement on Tuesday.

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New Zealand will wrap up military mission in Afghanistan

New Zealand has announced that the country will conclude its military mission in Afghanistan by May 2021. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta, and Defense Minister Peeni Henare announced Wednesday morning that the country will conclude “its deployment of the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) to Afghanistan by May 2021.”

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Peace talks ‘under threat’ as Taliban prepare for major spring offensive

Unusually intense fighting in the winter by Taliban insurgents has spurred Afghan government preparations for more violence in the warmer spring, which international players fear will further endanger the nation’s fragile peace process, Reuters reported.

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Russian envoy claims Moscow wants an interim government

Russian Special Envoy for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov said on Wednesday that Moscow would like all parties to the conflict in Afghanistan to agree to an inclusive and transitional coalition government.

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