Context Since the complete withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan in August 2021, it was assumed that Pakistan’s war against extremism had come to an end. There was a perception that the installation of Afghan Taliban in Kabul would make Pakistan’s regional influence grow. Besides, the nation was blamed for supporting the Taliban and providing…
ContextFrom time to time there is a need to ascertain the status of global Balance of Power, is it in equilibrium or moving in the favor of one or the other power. While the global Balance of Power and the associated Spheres of Influence are not the only construct to assess power dynamics–they are the…
Pakistan has been urging the international community, including the United States, to comprehensively engage with the Taliban. But Islamabad’s true interests are unclear, as anti-Pakistan terrorist groups freely operate in Afghanistan and Pakistan–Taliban relations remain poor. During Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s September 2022 trip to the United States, he repeatedly argued for full…
Context Alarmingly, US witnessed four 1-in-1-thousand years rain events over the summer. One of these events was in late July in Saint Louis when 9.04 inches of rain fell during a 15-hour storm. Around the same time, 14 to 15 inches of rain came down in Kentucky over a 5-day period. In early August, Southern…
One year after the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in August 2021, relations between China and Afghanistan have not progressed significantly. The reason being is that the main obstacles to a non-threatening Afghanistan—China’s principal objective—that existed in 2021 are still present today. China is particularly concerned about the presence of three non-state actors in…
Context As great power competition has gradually picked pace, it was assumed that the Campaign Against Extremism has subsided. In fact, US has admitted that this campaign has distracted it from preparing and dealing with global adversaries such as China and Russia. However, recent events have demonstrated that the character of the campaign has changed…
Context The New Cold War paradigm and great power rivalry framework is settling in and beginning to define international affairs. After Europe and Pacific, the Middle East is emerging as another hotly contested theater between the global powers. While Ukraine has been consuming most of the media bandwidth, matters related to Iran’s nuclear program and…
Context While there are different angles to interpret the fast-moving flux in the global political, economic and security situation, the great power rivalry perspective has a clearly dominant and picking pace. There is usually a period of calm when one power dominates or when there is stability in the balance of power equation. The rapid…
Context Historical parallels are important in developing perspectives on present-day conundrums. They provide an illustration of where matters were and what were the important events and considerations at the time. Deciphering this helps to ascertain where matters stand and navigate the future. The November article last year had examined the division of British subcontinent in…
Context What did Putin Invade Ukraine? Many interpretations have come to the fore on why Putin invaded Ukraine on February 22. One of the recurring ones is the ever-expanding NATO presence in Eastern Europe, which was now about to include Ukraine itself, right on the Russian border. Russia has often cited the unwritten understanding that…
