The strategic partnership agreement signed by India and Afghanistan on October 4 has aroused considerable diplomatic interest. How should India’s decision to politically escalate its ties with Afghanistan at this juncture be interpreted, and what c
It’s 10 years of the ongoing war in Afghanistan. As the US-led NATO forces prepare the ground to throw in the towel, the situation in the region remains as critical as ever. And, it’s unlikely to change until the Pakistan problem is sorted out
The brutal assassination of the former Afghan President Burnahuddin Rabbani who was chairing the High Peace Council set up to bring about internal reconciliation in Afghanistan dramatises all that is wrong with the country’s present state and its
The Indo-Afghan relations cannot but be seen in the context of the evolving situation in Afghanistan. Many regional and extra regional players have been involved in the Afghan imbroglio for over a decade and some for even over three decades. Interven
Geo-Political perceptions of Pakistan’s role in Afghanistan Before one can dwell on India’s options in Afghanistan, it may be better to examine the Pakistan’s role in this country. The geo- political perceptions of Pakistan in Afghani
India has clear strategic interests in Afghanistan but not a clear strategy to pursue them. An independent, sovereign Afghanistan, free of external interference would best serve India’s interests. So would an Afghanistan that is a transit hub betwe
For a country that never tires championing the cause of Afghan Pashtuns and eulogising the valour and traditions of Pakistani Pashtuns, the warped strategic vision of the national security state structure of Pakistan has inflicted the greatest damage
The superlatives being attributed to the signing of the Inter-Government Agreement (IGA) and the Gas Pipeline Framework Agreement (GPFA) for the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline appear rather farfetched especially when seen in
US President Barack Obama has kept his promise to begin pulling out American soldiers from Afghanistan by 2011. At the recently concluded Lisbon summit (19-20 November 2010), he suggested that 2014 would be the final year for major US combat engageme
President Obama, while agreeing to the ‘surge’ as suggested by General Stanley A. McCrystal announced in 2009 that US Army will start pulling out of Afghanistan after July 2011. This has resulted in a suspected loss of morale of the US Army and