The National Interest: Some South Asia observers have argued that the Trump administration’s decision to exit the Iran nuclear deal will hurt U.S. efforts to stabilize Afghanistan. Their reasoning: it reduces the viability of the Iranian port of Chabahar, which India aims to use as an alternate gateway to Afghanistan, bypassing the land corridor through Pakistan.
RFE/RL’s Radio Free Afghanistan: Mohammad Mirza cuts a striking figure on the streets of Kabul, bristling with bright green plastic watering cans he sells to passersby. He says he’s 97 years old. Copyright (c) 2018. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036.
Tolo News: Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industries (ACCI) says the value of trade between Afghanistan and other countries in the world has reduced to at least seven billion USD in recent years from almost $14 billion USD in 2014. The ACCI officials said economic stagnation of some companies in recent years has affected money in
Arab News: The trade of scorpion hunting in Afghanistan, though unregistered, has been around for years but has become a lucrative business in the past few months. A local dealer from western Herat province said Herat and neighboring Farah, with vast scorching deserts, have become the common hunting ground for shepherds and poor local residents who
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty May 26, 2018 At least 2 million people are at risk of severe food insecurity because of a devastating drought in Afghanistan, the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says. The hardest-hit are northern and western Afghanistan, where wheat planting has been either delayed or downsized in some 20
Forbes: Afghanistan’s economy is small and it is only the 145th largest exporter in the world. However, Iran plays a central role as the largest source of Afghan imports and the third largest destination for its exports, according to the World Bank. The importance of trade via Iran has been rising and was set to be
Ayaz Gul VOA News May 22, 2018 ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN — A new report Tuesday said Islamic State, the Taliban and corrupt power brokers in Afghanistan are making hundreds of thousands of dollars from illegal and abusive mining of talc, almost 80 percent of which is ending up in the United States and Europe. Earnings from illegal
RFE/RL’s Radio Free Afghanistan May 21, 2018 The Taliban has warned Kabul residents to stay away from “military centers” as they vowed more attacks in the Afghan capital. In a statement published online on May 21, the militants said the coming attacks on “the enemy’s military and intelligence centers” were part of an annual spring
Tolo News: Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industries (ACCI) said the trade volume between Afghanistan and Iran is increasing, but US sanctions on Tehran will affect trade relations between the two neighboring countries. Iran is the biggest trade partner of Afghanistan, CEO of ACCI Atiqullah Nusrat said, adding that Afghan traders are interested in increasing
Ayaz Gul VOA News May 19, 2018 ISLAMABAD — The Taliban has dismissed concerns its recent battlefield gains in western Afghanistan threaten security of a multibillion-dollar gas pipeline being laid through the area to link Central and South Asia. The project, known as TAPI, is planned to move natural gas from the world’s fourth-largest reserves in