Marvin G. Weinbaum is a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute (MEI), specializing in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran. He is professor emeritus of political science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he directed the university’s Program in South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies for 15 years.
Dr. Weinbaum’s research and teaching have centered on national security, state building, democratization, and political economy in South Asia. He is the author or editor of six books and has contributed over 100 scholarly journal articles and book chapters on Afghanistan, Pakistan, and broader regional issues.
From 1999 to 2003, Dr. Weinbaum served as an analyst for Pakistan and Afghanistan in the US Department of State’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research. He has also held Fulbright research fellowships in Egypt (1981–82) and Afghanistan (1989–90), and served as a senior fellow at the United States Institute of Peace in 1996–97. Over the course of his career, Dr. Weinbaum has received research awards from the Social Science Research Council, the Ford Foundation, the American Political Science Association, and other major funding institutions.
He holds a PhD from Columbia University, an MA from the University of Michigan, and a BA from Brooklyn College.
Pakistan's Independence Day highlights deepening ideological divide
On Aug. 14, Pakistan celebrated its 78th Independence Day against the backdrop of a widening ideological and societal divide between proponents of Islamic nationalism and those championing democracy. Seizing the occasion, both the military and political leaders, recognizing Pakistan’s vulnerability to political instability and eroding social cohesion, have sought to shape the national discourse and sway public opinion with their respective narratives.
Monday Briefing: The Middle East is the closest it has ever been to an all-out war
After 10 months of Israel’s war on Gaza, the US administration has lost control over its ally and the fear of its opponents. As a result, Washington has only limited, if any, impact on the cost-benefit escalation calculus of the fighting sides. The Middle East is today the closest it has ever been to an all-out multi-front regional war.
Pakistan’s political scene looks increasingly unsettled and complicated
The deep rift between the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party and Pakistan’s civil-military establishment shows no sign of weakening but appears to be shifting. The coalition government and its military sponsors, so recently seen as having taken command of the political heights, are now showing signs of panicking as they appear to be losing the initiative and ability to set the narrative.
The newly formed government coalition in Islamabad initially looked weak, unstable, and probably short lived. But in the weeks since the outcome of the vote was announced, the political landscape has rapidly changed. Nevertheless, there are portents of trouble ahead that could send Pakistan back into the political tangle from which it has so recently emerged.
