In October, the U.S. intervention in Afghanistan will turn 17. The human and material costs of what has become the United States’ longest-ever war are colossal. More than 2,000 U.S. military personnel have been killed and over 20,000 have been injured. The UN estimates that nearly 20,000 Afghan civilians have been killed and another 50,000 injured since 2009 alone. The United States has spent some $877 ...

With the US stepping back, it is obvious why Putin suddenly wants to talk to the Europeans about the plight of Syrian refugees.

After a suspiciously sudden conversion, Russian President Vladimir Putin now claims to be worried about the fate of millions of refugees who have fled the carnage in Syria. In a recent meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Putin expressed his hop...

With the Paris climate agreement, the international community agreed to limit the rise in average global temperature to 2C — and ideally 1.5C — above pre-industrial levels. To that end, national governments were tasked with developing their own climate-action plans, called nationally determined contributions (NDCs).

BY PATRICIA ESPINOSA & ANNE HIDALGO

Short-term fixes don't address the economy's long-term fragility, which is rooted in the personalistic autocracy that Erdogan has erected.

Turkey's political model has long lost its luster, but a growing diplomatic crisis with the equally erratic administration of US President Donald Trump has now pushed the country's economy into a full-fledged currency crisis. The Turkish lira ...

New START would limit the total number of deployed strategic warheads each side can deploy to 1,550 — still more than enough to destroy each other and the planet many times over.

THE U.S.-Russian relationship continues to spiral downwards. The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has imposed new sanctions on Russia, while Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev accused Washin...

Award winning journalist Mr. Mohammed Omer depicts the life in besieged Gaza strip in the following words, “FOR 9-YEAR-OLD ANAS, standing at the wall in Rafah which separates Egypt from Gaza, there is no attainable world beyond. That world exists only in his dreams. He can go to school and come back home to play—but always in the shadow of this blockade, called the wall. There he can play soccer, as...

The talks took place in Doha, where the Taliban have long maintained an informal “political office” for the purpose of restarting the long-dormant peace process. The spokeswoman, Stephanie R. Newman said, “Any negotiations over the political future of Afghanistan will be between the Taliban and Afghan government.”

After a stormy confrontation in Afghanistan, the U.S. diplomats he...

The supreme irony of the Singapore meeting is the idea of restraining the nuclear capabilities of North Korea and not eradicating them, which reminds one of the Iran deal that Trump has so nonchalantly rebuffed

After months of nail-biting anticipation, US President Donald Trump finally held an historic meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jung-Un. Both countries have now stemmed in ...

He would have to cooperate with a diverse parliament to cope with the challenges in the country. He has ruled for 15 years

The results of recent election in Turkey have given a jolt to the western media and the ilk. For the first time in Turkish history, the world saw a remarkable turnout to the tune of 87% which led to the victory of  Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Contrary to the b...

The sea is the common heritage of surrounding countries and could prove to be a significant factor that helps them forge alliances

According to uncontested hypotheses, oil and gas resources in the Caspian Sea are so rich that in the future it could turn into one of the largest petroleum centres in the Persian Gulf. This general belief has attached international importance to this re...

Trump is an interesting personality, frank, outspoken with an impolite mannerism. He now is the President of the United States of America, elected after a tough election campaign where he exposed his plans, his thought perceptions and almost all the facets of his personality, without inhibitions. Some of the issues he raised during the campaign were serious matter, concerning the American people:&l...

"This is why evangelicals love Trump's Israel policy" in Vox dated Dec 12 2017, quotes Elizabeth Oldmixon....

Donald Trump’s decision to unilaterally pull USA out of the Iran nuclear deal aka Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) has raised serious concerns among the other five members who had signed the accord along with USA in 2015 and a vast majority of the international...

Salute to the people of Malaysia

Gone are the days when corruption could be done with impunity. Past two decades saw a communication revolution of unprecedented scale: Facebook, twitter, YouTube, and the lion in the ring—the WhatsApp—have changed the face and shape of governance. Anything and everything gets recorded on smart phones and gets shared via social media. Human propens...

True to his statement, North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un has boosted 'the warm climate of reconciliation and dialogue' created by the Winter Olympics and kept alive the 'Olympics-driven momentum' for dialogue on the divided peninsula by meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in. The summit meeting took place on 27 April on the South Korean side of the Joint Security Area of the Truce Vi...

According to the monetary vision of Mr. Trump, "Trade wars are good, and easy to win." But the world markets did not see eye to eye with Mr. Trump and stumbled. They could recover temporarily when Trump hinted elasticity in the implementation of the tariffs

The whole world is witnessing wordlessly a trade war between China and the USA. It has just begun but nobody knows how it would ...

Pakistan is not the only country having a Supreme Court. The judicial involvement in politics and the politicization of judiciary are twin phenomena that have affected a number of countries, rarely, so towards a positive end. In many Asian nations, the role of Messiah has been taken upon itself by the military authority, a judicial entity, mullahs, monks and clergy, or even the electronic media, eac...

Late Libyan strongman Col Moammar Gaddafi is again into the news—and, except for the PSL matches in the Gaddafi Stadium—for all the wrong reasons. Firstly, ex-President of France, Nicolas Sarkozy, has been arrested by the French Police on charges that he received millions of dollars for his 2012 election run from the Gaddafi family. Secondly, Saif ul Islam, his son, has escaped justice as he has bee...

The Bush Doctrine and the US realpolitik are widely seen as the unilateral foreign intervention.

What is meant by Intervention: “Intervention (political) is a political term for significant activity undertaken by a state to influence something not directly under its control. Ideologies for supporting or opposing varying degrees of foreign intervention in international relations c...

So what can the world expect in the Year 2018?  Would we see the world’s biggest fight over economic power centers on the development of new information technologies? The US and China will compete to master artificial intelligence and supercomputing and will struggle for market dominance in Africa, India, Brazil and even in Europe, where governments must decide whom to tr...

With the presence of about 28,000 US troops in the South, Pyongyang has always been critical of Washington, considering it as an obstacle in the efforts of ultimate reunification of the two Koreas. The US on the other hand has not tolerated the prospects of a nuclear North Korea and has constantly tried to defang it.

South Korea hosted the XXIII Olympic&am...

What happened in its immediate neighbouring Iran has warning signs for Pakistan which has some, if not many, lessons to learn from. The grievances look familiar: soaring unemployment and inflation rates, corruption, income inequality, economic mismanagement poor service delivery and governance failings

Dawn of the New Year in Iran witnessed violent demonstrations which roused expec...

Social media falling in electronic media category is top of the list in spreading fake news out of all types of electronic and print media in Pakistan

The invention and use of Internet on wide scale paved the way for flood of information which has swept away the global society. The first decade of 21st century is marked with creation and spread of networks of globally linked comp...

Is Pressler really blind to the numerous major contradictions in the Indian democracy? Keeping in view the narrative of Narendra Modi-repression of minorities, rise of Hindu nationalism, massacre of innocent Kashmiris and over two dozen large and small scale insurgencies, it is not easy to let go Indian democracy contradictions

Larry Pressler, the former three times US senator from ...

A hybrid war, according to Hoffman, can be conducted by both states and non-state actors and incorporates a range of different modes of warfare, including conventional capabilities, irregular tactics and formations, terrorist acts including indiscriminate violence, coercion and criminal disorder

In 1993 when the beginning of an era of cyber wars was first predicted, many internationa...

What is there for Pakistan and Iran?

Saudi Arabia announced the arrest of 11 princes, including a prominent billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, and dozens of current and former ministers in a sweeping clean-up operation which sent tremors in the Kingdom and shocks around the world capitals. In a separate but related move, the Commander of the Saudi National Guard, once a ...

“When you can no longer trust your army, there are serious issues that need to be addressed” —(Robert Fisk)

The coup makers attempted to stem the tide of change taking place in Turkey, under the democratic order, but failed, unlike the earlier four attempts made in 1960, 71, 80 and 97, which succeeded. The attempted coup took place because the military considers itself the ...

Speaking from the White House, President Trump accused Iran of "not living up to the spirit" of the nuclear agreement and said that his goal was to ensure that Iran never obtained a nuclear weapon. "We will not continue down a path whose predictable conclusion is more violence, more terror and the very real threat of Iran's nuclear breakout," he said

After deciding to withdraw from U...

The greatest beneficiary of Trump's egomania is Modi government in India. Washington is in full drive pampering and encouraging India against China and Pakistan “Trump is a chaos candidate”—Jeb Bush, Candidate for U.S. Presidential race 2016

Although Jeb Bush lost in the U.S election primaries, his above quoted prediction onDonald J. Trump has proved more than accurate. Since taking ov...

On this day, we may do well to take stock of our failings and limitations in the maritime domain, prior applying ourselves during the rest of the year in faithfully addressing these concerns

The World Maritime Day is formally celebrated by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) on 28 September 2017. The IMO, for those who may not be aware, is the principa...

China's stance during the plenary sessions has been principled despite highest level Indian lobbying

The membershipinterest of Non NPT India and Pakistan to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) has evoked interest of the non proliferation international community. India wants to be member of the NSG and Pakistan wants a non-discrimination base criteria approach to its desire to be par...

This is not the first time the two neighbours who share a rocky relationship have faced off on the ill-defined border, where minor incursions by troops have been common

The disputed Sino-Indian border called Line of Actual Control (LAC), long a source of occasional clashes, is once again the focus of a confrontation between the two countries, this time in an area claimed by Bhutan. &...

The target is to stop temperatures rising by more than 2'C compared to the pre-industrial level. Failing which, the world is set to face rising sea levels, unprecedented heat spells, high intensity floods, droughts, diseases and other calamities

The recent G-20 Summit in Bonn, Germany, saw President Trump becoming isolated and singled out on Paris Climate Change Agreement. By announcin...

Although Pyongyang is known for hurling threats with extreme expletives, the US President's utterances have touched new heights.

The mounting tensions on the Korean peninsula are reminiscent of the October 1962 Cuban missile crisis when cold war was at a peak and deployment of Soviet nuclear arsenal was central to the American nervousness. Fifty five years ago, the scary episode was h...

Political Islam is identified as a 'seemingly unprecedented role of Islamic religion into the secular domain of politics.' Others define 'political Islam' to describe all movements that align their positions and actions based on the contents of religious texts

The era of the 1970s saw a wave of independence in the Middle East embodied in the revival of Political Islam; whose pres...

When America, with its growth rate hop scotching from negative to five percent, was redrawing Middle East policy... China was witnessing around 10 percent growth and its leadership was talking of reviving 2100 years old Silk Road linking East and West

In June 2006, while on a visit to Tel Aviv, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice introduced the shifting American thinking about t...

For I dipp'd into the future, far as human eye could see, Saw the vision of the world, and all the wonders that would be; Saw the heavens fill with commerce, argosies of magic sails Pilots of the purple twilight, dropping down with costly bales; Heard the heavens filled with shouting, and there rain'd a ghastly dew, From the nations' airy navies grappling in the central blue, Till the war drums thro...

The Korean War was the only conflict that had brought US and Chinese troops face to face in bloodiest direct combats

During the US Presidential Election Campaign in 2016, a candidate named Donald Trump had caused an uproar by suggesting that the United States should not be bothered about North Korean nuclear program. Rather Japan and South Korea should build their own nuclear weapon...

Endgame of Corruption Scandals

And the most crucial lesson to be learnt is: Beware of dogs, especially in politics

Much awaited decision from Panama Gate Scandal has come to the fore but the Prime Minister is still functional and except for a quotation of a novel titled Godfather behind every great fortune there is a crime there is nothing to settle the issue ...

The Palestinians, the Israelis and their American mediators understand that peace is only possible through give and take. The debate over One-State or Two-State solution must not take so long that one loses sight of the need for solution itself

What it is to be homeless can never be understood by a person who has never remained homeless. Can a nation as a whole b...

President seems appears to be convinced that Asian economies had always taken advantage of the United States, becoming rich at its expense

President Trump seems to be making good on his promises by taking initial steps, through executive orders, to build a wall across Mexico, banning the Muslims from entering the United States (initially for seven Muslim countries) and renegotiating ...

The EU member states need to introduce security sector reforms, and strengthen legal and parliamentary oversight bodies to prevent intelligence failure and corruption within the system

It is clear that intelligence and law enforcement in some European Union (EU) member states is characterised by variety, being the product of their specific history and culture. The majority of states ...

Through their ability to bring the major continents of Asia, Europe and America that much closer, these canals have proved to be long-standing testaments to man's skill and versatility

During the heydays of the British Empire, when it was entrenching itself ever so firmly in the heart of the Indian Ocean, it could not have failed to appreciate the strategic and economic advantages t...

Turkey and Russia had a love-hate relationship spanning over centuries. The political waves of present day Middle East are so turbulent that the crests and troughs in relationship between the two nations remain unpredictable on week by week basis. The launch of arts and painting exhibition in Ankara titled “Russia through Turkey’s eyes” was to be a high point in the relationship highlighting centuries o...

This policy of the US and NATO allies towards Pakistan and Afghanistan prompted the emergence of Russia and China as competent stakeholders in the region

Intelligence is crucial to the development of understanding — it requires practitioners and experts to operate in a complex environment. The Taliban intelligence war in Kunduz province received mixed responses in military circles of A...

In fact, Indo-Afghan interest in Chabahar was a foregone conclusion after Pakistan had turned down Afghanistan's request to permit access to Pakistani territory for its trade with India

The prevailing sense of elation about the supposedly ultra-bright prospects of the Gwadar-CPEC projects has in recent times been dampened by news about the expected rise of an adjoining port, a mere ...

The successful nuclear deal has provided Iran with the ample opportunity to increase manifold its economic and military tentacles in the Middle East

During the much-hyped presidential elections in America, President-elect Donald Trump used an incendiary language against Iran's powerful clerical rulers and the historic deal on the clandestine Iranian nuclear programme. The businessman t...

Admittedly, the European Union's genuine efforts to find a middle way between "Asylum shopping" and "Asylum Orbiting" is a welcome step

It was one year ago that the picture of three year old Alan Kurdi thrown ashore on a Turkish coast by the mighty waves of the Mediterranean sea made headlines. In a matter of hours, the millions of shares in print, electronic and social media made it ...

In the contemporary era of complex and intricate interplay of a host of the factors, there are two important trends that underpin current geostrategic milieu. Firstly, the globalization of the world economies have intensified resulting in greater inter dependencies and shared objectives for development (save Brexit). Secondly, multiple power centres have emerged along with the shift in global economic a...

Was it bad time management on part of the rebels or simply a stroke of luck for the President?

Turkish President Erdogan has always been a survivor, but this time his life and government were saved by a hair’s breadth. On the night between 15th and 16th July, a botched coup attempt led to the death of 270 persons, including two President’s confidantes and 41 loyalist troops. An equal ...

International newspapers such as “The Independent” and “The Guardian” are already of the view that Blair should be tried under war crimes for his role in the destruction of Iraq

July 2016 has truly been an eventful month. Whether it was acts of terrorism committed in various cities around the world, the failed coup attempt in Turkey or the deterioration of the crisis in Indian-Occupied...

From the perspective of the United Kingdom itself, the outcome has for the first time in past five centuries—since the War of Roses—posed serious existential threat to its territorial integrity as a single entity

Human world is unpredictable, and within it, politics is a strange phenomenon indeed. If one needed a proof, the British referendum on leaving the European Union has more than...

The Brexit camp proclaimed that exiting the EU would allow the UK to better control immigration, thus reducing pressure on public services, housing and jobs; save billions of pounds in EU membership fees

Traumatized bythe excruciating and debilitatingexperiences of two great wars on their continent within a span of merely three decades, European statesbegan a gradual process of eco...

Making peace between an insurgent group and a weak and fragile government is a herculean task. Negotiating with a government that supported the foreign forces in overthrowing the Taliban government is not easy.

Peace in Afghanistan is now a long cherished desire. The government of Afghanistan from Hamid Karzai to Dr Ashraf Ghani has failed to bring Afghan Taliban to the negotiating tab...