The visit by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar to Russia on December 24-29 presented an extraordinary spectacle reminiscent of the halcyon days of Indo-Soviet relations. There was an unnameable ecstasy in Jaishankar’s words on Russian soil. He even took a walk on the Red Square in the middle of Russian winter. But the minister is anything but a sentimental diplomat, […]

On December 27, 2023, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) told the Islamabad Federal Capital’s Police not to treat Baloch protesters as “enemies”. Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb’s remarks came as he heard a petition filed on December 21, 2023, challenging the arrest of marchers who arrived in the Federal Capital, Islamabad, on foot from Turbat town in the Kech District of […]

Observers might expect that the exacerbation of long-running Iranian-Pakistani tensions would be against Islamabad’s interests, just like they might think the same about closer Indian-Iranian relations in the aftermath of this unprecedented tit-for-tat against designated terrorists in Balochistan. In reality, the Pakistani Establishment – which refers to the country’s powerful military-intelligence structures that call the shots behind the scenes – […]

If the US feels that it’s obtained a decisive edge over China through the crystallization of AUKUS+ and upon maximally stockpiling weapons in Taiwan, then it might even seek to provoke a conflict that wargamers convinced themselves Beijing would lose, which is a frightening scenario that can’t be ruled out. The US is shaping the Asia-Pacific in preparation of a […]

The West and especially its leading Anglo-American Axis stands in full solidarity with their Establishment proxies in Pakistan. They entirely support their efforts to snuff out the only multipolar force in the country through whatever means are necessary, which will likely be sold to the foreign audience as being done on “national security” pretexts upon the impending banning of PTI. […]

Pakistan launched airstrikes against alleged militant hideouts inside Iran on Thursday, killing at least nine people as it retaliated for a similar attack days earlier by Iran and raising tensions with its neighbor as conflict across the region escalates. The unprecedented attacks by both Pakistan and Iran on either side of their border appeared to target Baluch militant groups with […]

RUSI expert Dr Antonio Giustozzi discusses Taliban counterterrorism efforts against Islamic State Khorasan Province, based on research conducted by RUSI as part of the EU-funded STRIVE Afghanistan programme.

RUSI expert Dr Antonio Giustozzi discusses the threat posed by Islamic State Khorasan Province, the regional branch of Islamic State active in Afghanistan and Pakistan, based on research conducted by RUSI as part of the EU-funded STRIVE Afghanistan programme.

On Tuesday, Iran used missiles and drones to strike western Pakistan near Koh-e-Sabz. On Thursday, Pakistan conducted airstrikes in southeastern Iran near Saravan, then released a statement claiming that “Iran is a brotherly country.” More than a sibling squabble is going on here. Iran and Pakistan were apparently targeting hideouts of armed non-state actors—Jaish al-Adl in Pakistan, and the Balochistan […]

Four Afghan nationals have been arrested in Sarajevo, capital of Bosnia, and charged with kidnapping three other foreigners and holding them for ransom. Officials with the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA) said Thursday that the kidnappers demanded 18,000 euros (US$19,556) in ransom for the victims, who were from Iran and Switzerland, Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) reported. […]