Twenty years ago, a major terrorist attack against the U.S. homeland shocked a country many imagined to be as indispensable as it was exceptional. Today, it seems almost fitting that the United States should mark the 20th anniversary of that attack under the shock of the ignominious end to the intervention in Afghanistan. Whether shock will be enough to prompt […]

The anger directed by Americans at Pakistan in the wake of the disorderly end of the U.S. war in Afghanistan is understandable. After all, Pakistan really did give shelter to the Afghan Taliban, something that played a vital role in the Taliban’s eventual victory. However, the reaction in Washington is also a way of avoiding an honest analysis of the […]

Last week, the U.S. Department of Defense released a one-page summary of its findings from an investigation into a drone strike in Kabul that killed a family of 10 during the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. U.S. military officials had received intelligence that a specific car had visited a “suspected” Islamic State safehouse and loaded what “appeared to be” explosives into […]

Russia’s ongoing military buildup along its border with Ukraine has cast into sharp relief the debate about how the United States, and its allies, can most effectively ensure security in the no man’s land lying beyond NATO’s eastern perimeter. Meanwhile, China’s mounting campaign of military pressure and intimidation against Taiwan is leading some observers to question the strength of U.S. […]

With Pakistan Peoples’ Party chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari mocking Prime Minister Imran Khan by saying “Earlier, Pakistan’s policy on Kashmir was on how we will take Srinagar. Now, under Imran Khan’s government, we have been forced to think on how we will save Muzaffarabad,” Kashmir has become a matter of personal prestige for Pakistan’s cricketer turned politician. New Delhi’s decision […]

Russian President Vladimir Putin visited India for a few hours on 6 December 2021 for the 21st Annual Summit between India and Russia. Putin decided to go ahead with this visit although the clouds of confrontation over his country’s border with Ukraine loomed menacingly. As Covid-19 cases in Russia continue to surge, with about 32,000 cases and 1,200 deaths being […]

Swarnim Vijay Varsh was celebrated throughout 2021 to mark 50 years of India’s victory against Pakistan in the 1971 war. The three services commemorated their successes: the Indian Air Force’s achievement of complete air superiority, its extensive disruption of Pak energy and transportation, and the foiling of its planned ‘Tikka offensive’; the Indian Navy’s blockade of Karachi seaport that crippled […]

By unilaterally calling-off the month-long ceasefire and killing two police men in Tank district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa just to drive home this message, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan [TTP] has made it clear to Islamabad that it has no appetite for dialogue. Though expected all along, this development has nevertheless come as a serious setback for Prime Minister Imran Khan who’s already grappling […]

Groups such as Al-Qaeda and Daesh will take advantage of the Afghan crisis, Pakistan foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi cautioned on Friday ahead of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s special session in Islamabad. The 17th Extraordinary Session of the OIC’s Council of Foreign Ministers was called by Saudi Arabia and will be hosted by Islamabad on Dec. 19. The meeting’s […]

The Chinese military has been holding more live-fire drills in the contested South China Sea this week, state media reported, while accusing the United States of “saber-rattling and making provocations.” The military exercises come as Washington has amplified its concerns about China’s “aggressive actions.” This week the top U.S. diplomat vowed to ensure freedom of navigation in the disputed waterway. […]