On April 17, 2023, a Chinese national, identified as Tian, working at the Dasu hydropower project of Kohistan District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), was taken into Police custody following unrest, after labourers at the dam site accused him of making blasphemous remarks during a heated argument. “We have arrested the foreigner suspect under blasphemy and terrorism charges and airlifted him […]

On April 13, Samarkand hosted the fourth ministerial conference of Afghan neighbouring countries which included Russia, China, Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov took part in the event. The Neighbouring Countries of Afghanistan mechanism was established in 2021 on Pakistan’s initiative with a view to evolving a regional approach on situation in Afghanistan. Pakistan hosted […]

Terrorism and violent extremism have plagued Pakistan for decades, causing regional instability and damaging the country’s economic and social fabric. Terrorism has expanded across Pakistan because of the country’s geographic location and because of the continuing war in Afghanistan. In 2022, terrorist acts claimed the lives of over 643 individuals, a 120% increase over 2021. Terrorism is a worldwide problem […]

Pakistani Chargé d’Affaires to Afghanistan Ubaidur Rehman Nizamani has returned to Kabul more than four months after he survived an attempt on his life, “Yes, I have resumed my responsibilities,” Nizamani told Dawn.com. This comes after Nizamani was evacuated in December after being shot at while walking in the embassy compound in Kabul. Nizamani was unhurt in the incident, but […]

Defence has received the largest share of funds in Afghanistan’s budget as the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) government aims to boost forces by a third and build anti-aircraft missile capacity, the army chief told Reuters in a rare interview to foreign media. The defence ambitions of the IEA, which took over in 2021, come in the face of strong […]

In today’s globalization process, the sources of risks have also diversified, necessitating a multi-faceted strategy to manage emerging difficulties. China thinks that a military approach to dealing with South Asian security concerns would further harm the interests of the region’s governments. As a result, the optimal strategy would be to emphasize the cultivation of economic, social, and cultural linkages, which […]

That Hindus and Muslims have co-existed in India for centuries is an indisputable historical fact, but Pakistan’s founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah didn’t think so. In 1940, while delivering the All India Muslim League’s presidential address in Lahore, he argued that Hindus and Muslims “belong to two different civilizations which are based mainly on conflicting ideas and conceptions” [Emphasis added]. He […]

Background We’re in a kind of cold war. “We’re witnessing a great strategic competition between the US and China, who are not only playing on their own board but on the global one.” Jorge Heine, Professor of International Relations at Boston University’s Pardee School of Global Studies, has rightly said, “There’s a growing consensus that we’re facing a Second Cold […]

In April 2022, Pakistan witnessed its first successful no-confidence vote ousting Prime Minister Imran Khan. Khan, however, went down swinging and vowed to return to power this year. While his close relationship with the establishment once led his opponents to characterise him as the ‘prime minister selected’, Khan now postures a distinctly anti-establishment message. Amidst an economic crisis and growing […]

Pakistan, being a country in a volatile region, has long been facing security challenges. Its neighbors, India and Afghanistan, have a history of tension with Pakistan, and the presence of various hostile elements within the country adds to the security concerns. To counter these threats, Pakistan has been allocating a reasonable portion of its budget towards defense. However, despite facing […]