China will resume issuing visas to Afghans from August 1 and allow 98 percent of Afghan imports to enter tax free, it was reported on Friday. Foreign Minister Wang Yi announced the measures when he met Afghan Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in Uzbekistan on Thursday, Reuters reported citing a statement from the Chinese foreign ministry. Wang also told […]

Afghanistan’s economy has deteriorated significantly since the Taliban’s return to power, owing largely to a reduction in international aid flows. Many well-educated Afghans have left the country, leaving Taliban-controlled Afghanistan short on entrepreneurs, skilled workers, and domestic capital resources. Taliban success in curbing official corruption and the end of the civil war partly mitigates the economic difficulties; yet half the […]

One year after their takeover of Afghanistan, the Taliban have struggled to govern the country, maintained a close relationship with al-Qaeda, and fostered an atmosphere of violence, insecurity, and economic stagnation. The situation for women and girls in Afghanistan has drastically deteriorated since the Taliban consolidated power in August 2021, with access to education and employment being greatly curtailed. The […]

One year after the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan, fighting has decreased considerably. Yet serious security problems remain, not least the foreign militants still in the country. External actors should press the new authorities to fulfil their commitments and avoid any steps that could reignite large-scale violence. What’s new? The world’s deadliest war subsided into an uneasy calm after the Taliban […]

On August 8, 2022, four soldiers were killed in a suicide blast targeting a military convoy in the Mir Ali area of North Waziristan District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). Two days later, on August 10, Ittehad Musallah Islami Mujahideen (IMAM)’s spokesperson Abu Basheer Waziristani claimed responsibility for the attack. On August 3, 2022, two policemen were killed and another two […]

Beijing has “successfully completed” weeklong exercises around Taiwan, though additional military activity in the region can be expected, a Chinese military official announced Wednesday. China plans to continue “military training and preparations,” organize patrols in the Taiwan Strait and “resolutely defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Eastern Theater Command spokesman Col. Shi Yi said in a news release. The drills, […]

KABUL — A top leader of the Pakistani Taliban militia was reported killed Sunday in southeastern Afghanistan, potentially dealing a serious blow to peace talks being negotiated between the extremist group and Pakistani officials with assistance from senior Taliban leaders in Afghanistan. An aide to the Pakistani militia leader, known as Omar Khalid Khorasani, said in a tweet Monday morning […]

A suicide bomber attacked a military convoy in a Pakistani tribal region along the Afghan border, killing four soldiers, the army said on Tuesday. The incident took place in Mir Ali, North Waziristan district, according to an army statement. Police and intelligence officials told Reuters the bomber rammed a three-wheeler into the convoy late on Monday in the remote district, […]

U.S. warships will continue to make Taiwan Strait transits and perform freedom of navigation operations in the Indo-Pacific despite the recent Chinese live fire drills, the undersecretary of defense for policy told reporters Monday. The U.S. Navy is expected to conduct some freedom of navigation operations in the region in the coming days, Colin Kahl, undersecretary of defense for policy, […]

China’s military said on Monday it is continuing drills in the seas and skies around Taiwan. The Eastern Theater Command of China’s People’s Liberation Army said on social media Weibo that it will practice conducting anti-submarine attacks and sea raids, Reuters reported. The military has carried out an unprecedented set of naval and air force drills in areas near Taiwan […]