Iran has positioned itself as an important regional actor in Central Asia and is committed to playing a role in neighboring Afghanistan. As U.S. troops draw down their numbers in Afghanistan, Washington should consider how improved U.S.-Iranian relations could further long-term U.S. policy goals in Afghanistan and in the region. Read Here – Carnegie Endowment […]
Clinton seems to have largely rehabilitated her image in the eyes of liberal primary voters and interest groups, a remarkable feat given just how bitter things got in 2008. Back then, many on the left flank of the party villainized her husband as a reckless narcissist who foisted NAFTA and financial deregulation on the nation, […]
There is a country in the Middle East where a youthful, educated and culturally Westernised population pulses with inventiveness and vitality. Its society is religious, certainly, and harbours a deeply ingrained suspicion of Britain and America, yet it also turns an implacably hostile face towards al-Qaeda’s brand of Sunni radicalism. Read Here – The Telegraph, […]
In case anyone needed reminding, the recent global terror alert illustrates that, 15 years after its first attacks on America, Al Qaeda is thriving. The coup in Egypt and the chaotic aftermath of the Arab awakening is only going to add more militants to this army of radicals. Failed revolutions and failing states are like incubators for […]
Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan‘s new prime minister, faces important challenges if he is to improve his country’s economic and security situation, as well as make progress in relationships with Kabul, New Delhi and Washington. His first priority, however, will be to forge a good working relationship with the military. Read Here – IISS
As NATO forces continue the process of withdrawing from Afghanistan, the People’s Republic of China finds itself in a conundrum. With tensions flaring throughout the Asia-Pacific, in part because of a more aggressive Chinese foreign policy, the last thing Beijing wants is to face a security risk along its western border. Read Here – The DIplomat
Iran’s strategic ambitions are not limited to looking West into the Arab world and the war in Syria. It is also looking East, where it has an active alliance with China and a working relationship with India, but closer to its borders, Iran is working hard to build its influence in Afghanistan. Read Here – […]
Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan‘s new prime minister, has already made clear that, unlike his predecessors, he won’t tacitly endorse the United States’ current counterterrorism operations. That leaves Washington with one option: finding some way to cooperate with Islamabad on drone strikes without diminishing their effectiveness. Read Here – Foreign Affairs
Pakistan‘s military response to the raid that killed al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden on the night of May 1, 2011, was entirely inadequate, a leaked government report has charged. Furthermore, due to “outdated” defence procedures and an overall defence “policy bankruptcy”, the country remains vulnerable to such raids in the future, says the Abbottabad Commission […]
General (retired) Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan’s former military strongman and once Washington’s trusted ally in the war on terror, may soon be prosecuted, the first time in the country’s history that a former army chief will face legal action for violating the constitution and tampering with its democratic institutions. Read Here – The Hindu
looking beyond borders 