Michael Hughes: Washington still lacks any viable strategy for ending the 17-year-old war in Afghanistan outside of a last ditch bid to strike a Faustian bargain with Taliban contacts in Doha. Beijing, on the other hand, appears to have a workable regional solution that can bring stability and prosperity to Afghanistan if the United States
Safiullah Taye via Al Jazeera: If the peace process proceeds along the unilateral paths that the US and Russia have taken up, this would result in a weaker Afghan government (whether Ghani-led or not) which would undermine whatever peace agreement is eventually reached. Afghanistan needs a strong state to ensure stability and security, not a
The Washington Post: The war lasted for nearly a decade. Among its consequences were 1 million civilian casualties; the rise of Islamist fundamentalist groups (backed by the West as a counterweight to the Soviets); and the collapse of the Soviet economy, which precipitated the end of the Soviet Union, which is now so lamented by both
Shazar Shafqat via the Hill: So, President Trump seems to have paid heed to what the “experts” have been saying, as he no longer appears ready to cut and run in Afghanistan. At least, that’s what we’ve been told. Now that the operation in Ghazni is intensifying and the insurgents will likely have to regroup after
Michael Hughes: There is clear evidence based on declassified publicly available U.S. intelligence reports that Saudi officials were directly involved in the funding, plotting and orchestration of the terrorist attacks against the United States on September 11, 2001. No member of the Saudi royal family, however, has yet to face a tribunal – or any type of
Lowy Institute: The neo-patrimonial state that developed under President Hamid Karzai and persists under President Ashraf Ghani has proved incapable of offering effective protection for vulnerable populations. The international community, too, has been ineffective in confronting the problem of “sanctuaries” in Pakistan from which the Taliban operate with impunity. The Hazaras in Khas Uruzgan, Jaghori, and
IPD: As Washington seeks to stabilize the situation in Afghanistan, it has sought various avenues to change the course of the war. Despite exhausting a variety of resources and billions of dollars, Washington’s policies have yet to address the root cause of the war: Pakistan’s pivotal role in the Taliban’s insurgency. Instead, Washington has acknowledged Pakistan’s
“We have no eternal allies, and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are eternal and perpetual, and those interests it is our duty to follow.” -Lord Palmerston, speech in House of Commons, 1848 Michael Hughes November 16, 2018 The Russian government escalated its involvement in the 21st Century’s version of the Great Game by
The Hill: The situation in Afghanistan is murky no longer – because it has, to a large extent, spiraled out of control. Rather than seeking a win-win scenario in which the United States might forge a deal with the Taliban for a more peaceful country, U.S. officials instead seem hell-bent on delivering to the Taliban everything
Al Jazeera: Russia is seeking to re-assert itself as a major player in Afghanistan – For keen observers of Russian foreign policy, it was clear that the conference was not more than a photo-op meant to publicly declare the Kremlin’s ambition to re-assert itself in the southern part of Central Asia and Afghanistan in particular. Click here