Worryingly, the Pakistan government is engaging the militant group in talks from a position of weakness. The Pakistani government has been negotiating with the Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) for weeks in an effort to permanently halt cross-border attacks from Afghanistan. The latest round of intense and extensive negotiations has seen Pakistan going all in to involve relevant stakeholders to reach […]

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Defense Minister Wei Fenghe spoke in Singapore, part of an effort to add “guardrails” to the China-U.S. competition. U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin held his first meeting with China’s Minister of Defense Wei Fenghe on Friday, on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. Both men are also slated to speak later at […]

After a whirlwind of visits and agreements, where does the Pacific region stand? Developments of great significance continue to unfold in the Pacific following China’s bold attempt to redraw the region’s geopolitical map. China aimed to create a bloc of “China-Pacific Island” countries during Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s barnstorming eight-nation tour through the region, which began on May 26 in […]

Indian forces in Kashmir killed two militants on Wednesday, one them suspected of gunning down a bank manager this month, police said, part of a stepped-up counter-insurgency effort that has triggered an exodus from the Muslim-majority region. India has been fighting an Islamist separatist insurgency in Kashmir since the late 1980s. Muslim Pakistan also claims the region over which the […]

The regional capos who broke Afghanistan once before are angling to contest control of the country with the current Taliban rulers. Exiled warlords, power brokers, and ethnic leaders who fled Afghanistan last year ahead of the Taliban’s victory are threatening civil war unless the Islamists start negotiating to let them return home and reclaim their power and authority as an […]

Russia’s special envoy for Afghanistan has said Moscow may recognise the interim Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) government and has reserved grain for the South Asian country to stave off the possible food crisis there. “There is such a possibility. Its conditions were determined by both the Russian president and foreign minister,” Zamir Kabulov told the Russian state TV Channel […]

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Assistant Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan, Tarig Ali Bakheet, held a meeting with the Special Envoy of the European Union for Afghanistan, Thomas Nicholson, on Tuesday and discussed the unfolding developments in Afghanistan. In a series of tweets the OIC said discussions at the meeting focused […]

The United Nations Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees, Kelly T. Clements and an accompanying delegation met with Afghanistan’s acting Deputy Foreign Minister, Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai, in Kabul where they discussed the return of refugees and resettlement of IDPs. Stanekzai said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) government intends to prevent further migration and repatriate former refugees. “However, given the decades […]

Officials at the country’s central bank – Da Afghanistan Bank – said Wednesday they have embarked on a series of discussions with professors and lecturers from financial faculties of universities to find solutions to increase the value of the Afghan currency. The Monetary Policy discussions are being held between central bank officials and university staff across the country in a […]

In a joint statement in April, both India and the United States (US) demanded the Taliban to respect human rights and women rights, and deter Afghanistan from promoting or harbouring terrorists. A month later, the US Special Representative for Afghanistan held high-level engagements with senior Indian diplomats. Officials from both the countries also met Abdullah Abdullah—who had carried a special […]