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US-Russia rift exacerbates Afghanistan’s crisis of confidence
Photo by MANNY CENETA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
  • Commentary
  • US-Russia rift exacerbates Afghanistan’s crisis of confidence

    Multiple signs point to a crisis of confidence in Afghanistan. Ever since the publication of a sensational report alleging that a Russian military intelligence unit secretly offered bounties to the Taliban to kill American soldiers, there has been an intense debate about the possibility of peace in Afghanistan following the U.S. exit.

    July 10, 2020

    Moscow’s Evolving Southern Strategy
  • Analysis
  • Moscow’s Evolving Southern Strategy

    Despite the collapse of the Soviet Union, the newly independent states of the Caspian and Russia are still deeply intertwined in each other’s economies, security, and cultures. Moscow has continued to wield considerable military, political, and economic influence in the region.

    July 1, 2020

    Iran’s influence in Afghanistan
    Photo by WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images
  • Analysis
  • Iran’s influence in Afghanistan

    Despite strong religious and cultural ties and a long shared border, Iran has a somewhat complicated relationship with Afghanistan. Since the Soviet Union’s invasion of Afghanistan some four decades ago, Iran’s attempts to preserve its interests in conflict-ridden Afghanistan have not received much attention from the outside world, but it remains one of the most important neighboring countries for Tehran’s foreign policy.

    June 23, 2020

    Disarray in Pakistan’s health crisis
    Photo by FAROOQ NAEEM/AFP via Getty Images
  • Commentary
  • Disarray in Pakistan’s health crisis

    Mainly at issue for the country is the difficult choice of whether to prioritize saving lives or saving the economy for a Pakistan that can ill afford to ignore either.

    The Taliban’s two-track strategy
    Photo by Wali Sabawoon/NurPhoto via Getty Images
  • Commentary
  • The Taliban’s two-track strategy

    The Taliban’s military and diplomatic strategies are intended to work in tandem, one leveraging the other. Each has as its ultimate goal the Taliban’s recovery of an emirate lost in 2001.

    Uncertainty plagues Afghanistan
    Photo by WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images
  • Commentary
  • Uncertainty plagues Afghanistan

    The spread of the virus, unease about a cease-fire, peace talks, and the American withdrawal leave the Afghan people gripped with a heightened sense of uncertainty.

    CPEC need not be a zero-sum game for the US
    Photo by Ahmad Kamal/Xinhua via Getty Images
  • Commentary
  • CPEC need not be a zero-sum game for the US

    The growing U.S. strategic reliance on India has fomented closer bilateral ties between China and Pakistan, straining the U.S.-Pakistan relationship.

    May 26, 2020