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Deep Challenges for Trump In The Region
The ground realities in the region demonstrate that the US President-elect, Donald Trump, would have limited options while reviewing foreign policy amid growing complexities around stabilising Afghanistan and Middle East. Managing ties with Islamabad and New Delhi is also complicating the regional situation for Washington. With the stunning result of the presidential election on November 8 in the US, Trump’s victory surprised majority around the world. This was also a shift of power from Democratic Party to Republican. The two often differ at the foreign policies of the country. The unexpected result of the elections triggered speculations about Trump’s future priorities in the region and the world. His country has been facing policy issues in the region for long and the US, a country with an abundance of talented policymakers and experts, have to tackle it now. Almost daily, Trump is getting briefings from experienced officials on a complex situation around the US, especially difficulties in the region. The stabilisation of Afghanistan and Iraq-Syria region, where the US engagement is prolonging more than it was expected, are the first of challenges that the Trump Administration would have to tackle at the foreign front after January, when power would be formally handed over to him. In Afghanistan and the Middle East, the US is facing dilemmas of strategic and tactical goals that is a hurdle in coordinating efforts with its regional allies and players. Washington needs regional players like Turkey and Iran for the Middle East, and Pakistan, India, Iran, China for Afghanistan. A significant circle in the US believes that their country’s engagements in the two regions were prolonged due to the dissimilarity of the tactical goals among the players. In the case of the Middle East, Turkey is sharing strategic goals with the US to defeat terrorism/Daesh but seriously differ which at the tactical level. Turkey is targeting Kurdish fighters while the US needs them at the...
Bad Goodbyes
Two Kabul-based dailies, Afghanistan Times and Daily Outlook Afghanistan, prominently placed two news items out of Peshawar and Islamabad on Tuesday: ‘Afghan return deadline may be extended’. It referred to a decision taken at the parliamentary party conference in Islamabad. Additionally, Pajhwok news agency reported that Islamabad is telling the provinces not to harass Afghan refugees and not to take any legal action against undocumented Afghans. These two pieces of information must have come as a relief for scores of families currently divided across the Durand Line. There is hardly anyone in Afghanistan who doesn’t have a family member or has never been to Pakistan. And hence they have legitimate concerns for their safety and possible harassment by the police and other agencies. Around the same time this news surfaced, the Ministry for Refugees and Repatriations issued a statement saying that the number of returnees from Pakistan this year had touched 600,000 and 300,000 Afghans had returned from Iran since January. Concerns about the well-being of the Afghans resonated a day earlier also during interactions with nearly 200 students of the state Balkh University and the private Mawlana University in Mazar-e-Sharif. This bustling town is home to the mausoleum of Hazrat Ali (AS), the fourth caliph. And only three days earlier a massive suicide attack on the German consulate there had shaken the city centre. But you could hardly tell because most of the students appeared to welcome to the delegates of the Pak-Afghan Track II Beyond Boundaries. 600,000 is the number of people who have returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan this year, says the Ministry for Refugees and Repatriations. An additional 300,000 Afghans returned home from Iran since January While greeting Pakistani guests, former ambassadors Qazi Hamayun and Mian Sanaullah and the young men and women were curious why Pakistan was forcibly sending its refugees back; How would this benefit Pakistan? Was...
TAWDE KHABARE: Implications of Tensions Between Afghanistan-Pakistan Discussed
In this episode of Tawde Khabare, host Khpolwak Sapai looks at what the implications in terms of peace and stability are in the face of ongoing tension between Afghanistan and Pakistan. He also looks at what roles Afghans and Pakistanis can play on both sides of the Durand Line in order to resolve the problems. With him in the studio are the following guests: Helai Irshad, MP Khalid Pashton, MP Tahir Khan, Pakistani writer Imtiaz Gul, Pakistani political analyst https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntHqd7WIWv4 This article originally appeared on www.tolonews.com, 16 November, 2016. Original link.
We Want Good Ties with Pakistan, Says Abdullah
Chief Executive Officer Abdullah Abdullah on Wednesday said Afghanistanwanted good and positive ties with Pakistan keeping in view the good neighborhood principle. A statement from the CEO office said Abdullah made the remarks during a meeting with Afghanistan and Pakistan’s parliament and civil society members. The joint group members, comprised of lawmakers and civil society activists from both the countries, said the grouping was aimed at reinforcing relations between the two countries and addressing problems. The group stressed improved ties between the two countries and said the joint group through visits and gatherings was trying to find solution to problems the neighbours faced. Abdullah expressed gratitude to the joint group’s efforts and said Afghanistan and Pakistan were neighboring countries and Kabul wanted good and positive ties with Islamabad. He stressed good relations with all neighboring countries and declared his support to the bilateral joint group. Terrorists were not only a threat to Afghanistan and Pakistan but to the entire region, said Abdullah, stressing a joint and sincere effort by the two countries and the region against terrorism. Abdullah called the dialogue between representatives of the two countries as effective and said such sessions helped governments resolve problems. The joint group held its first meeting in Lahore, Pakistan last year and concluded its second meeting in Mazar-i-Sharif city on Tuesday. This article originally appeared on www.pajhwok.com, 17 November, 2016. Original link. Disclaimer: Views expressed in the article are not necessarily supported by CRSS.
We Want Good Ties with Pakistan: Abdullah
Chief Executive Officer Abdullah Abdullah on Wednesday said Afghanistan wanted good and positive ties with Pakistan keeping in view the good neighborhood principle. A statement from the CEO office said Abdullah made the remarks during a meeting with Afghanistan and Pakistan’s parliament and civil society members. The joint group members, comprised of lawmakers and civil society activists from both the countries, said the grouping was aimed at reinforcing relations between the two countries and The group stressed improved ties between the two countries and said the joint group through visits and gatherings was trying to find solution to problems the neighbours faced. Abdullah expressed gratitude to the joint group’s efforts and said Afghanistan and Pakistan were neighboring countries and Kabul wanted good and positive ties with Islamabad. He stressed good relations with all neighboring countries and declared his support to the bilateral joint group. Terrorists were not only a threat to Afghanistan and Pakistan but to the entire region, said Abdullah, stressing a joint and sincere effort by the two countries and the region against terrorism. Abdullah called the dialogue between representatives of the two countries as effective and said such sessions helped governments resolve problems. The joint group held its first meeting in Lahore, Pakistan and concluded its second meeting in Mazar-i-Sharif city on Tuesday. (Pajhwok) This article originally appeared on www.outlookafghanistan.net, 17 November, 2016. Original link. Disclaimer: Views expressed in the article are not necessarily supported by CRSS.
Setback for India As Consensus Eludes NSG Meeting
In what may be called a major setback for Indian ambitions to join the nuclear trade cartel, consensus continued to elude the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) at its last meeting in Vienna held for considering admission of non-NPT countries. Although last week’s meeting was meant to discuss the technical, legal and political matters relating to non-NPT members’ (India and Pakistan) accession to the NSG, the Indian case took the spotlight because of US pressure for getting India into the group before the end of the year. The extraordinary plenary session of the 48-member group that regulates international nuclear commerce had been specially convened for this purpose. At least 12 NSG members at the meeting called for a criteria-based approach. These included China, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Italy, Ireland, Switzerland, Austria, New Zealand, Belgium, Brazil and Russia, according to a source aware of the proceedings at the Vienna plenary. India has been blaming Beijing for being the chief blocker. At the meeting, China maintained that any formula worked out should be non-discriminatory and applicable to all non-NPT states; without prejudice to the core value of the NSG and the effectiveness, authority and integrity of the international non-proliferation regime with the NPT as its cornerstone; and without contradicting the customary international law in the field of non-proliferation. China told the NSG members that it was ready to work with all parties to promote early progress by the group in this regard, according to a Chinese statement. The source claimed that there was growing support for developing criteria for non-NPT states and the Chinese proposal for a two-step approach for new admissions which involved developing criteria in the first stage and then inviting applications for membership. The source said the development was not surprising because the mood of the NSG members before the meeting had clearly pointed towards the continuing stalemate. It was the...
From Bad to Worse!
Terrorism is a great barrier before the nascent democracy in Afghanistan. With the fall of the Taliban’s regime, democracy was established with the endorsement of Constitution, which includes all the fundamental rights and freedoms of the public. The human rights’ discourse and presidential elections were significant landmarks in our history. Women’s key role in social, cultural and political activities revealed Afghanistan’s high step towards democracy. The hegemony of democracy put major impact on public life in one way or another. Heaving a sigh of relief, Afghans embraced democracy with open arms and dreamt of a civil society, where no one’s rights and liberty are violated. The downfall of the Taliban’s regime was believed to put an end to war and violence and the blood of Afghan nation would not be spilt by the terrorist groups. Afghan men and women celebrated democracy before the ballot boxes with the hope of saving their lives from the bullet of warring parties, who show no mercy to civilians. Suffering under the cruel regime of the Taliban, Afghan women waxed romantic about freedom and democracy. By and large, the last constitution of Afghanistan was approved by people’s elected representatives in Loya Jirga (National Grand Assembly) held on January 3, 2004 in Kabul. This Constitution includes the inherent and inalienable rights, liberty and dignity of the individuals irrespective of their race, creed, color and sex and upholds international charters and Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). This constitution, which is based on national values and international standards, states, “Liberty and human dignity are inviolable. The state shall respect and protect liberty as well as human dignity.” The US-led NATO “war on terror” believed to root out terrorism from Afghanistan’s soil and strengthen the inchoate democracy. The Taliban’s guerilla fighters, that were a product of social, cultural and political rift, were, however, reorganized and involved in...
Conflict in Afghanistan Is America’s Longest War
We’ve heard Donald Trump’s views on Syria, Ukraine and on fighting ISIS. But one international issue trump has yet to mention is Afghanistan! Well that conflict could catch up with the president elect sooner than he may think: Afghanistan is in peril: the Taliban are gaining ground; the power sharing government is close to collapsing. Remember, just like Donald Trump, the man who first went into Afghanistan, George W. Bush also started off as an isolationist wanting to end nation-building projects. Well, this week marks the 15th anniversary of the fall of the Taliban, and – as Ivan Watson reports – America’s efforts to rebuild the afghan nation are struggling. It is America’s longest war. The conflict in Afghanistan, It began 15 years ago. After the September 11 terror attacks, orchestrated by Osama bin laden, the al Qaeda leader was a guest and ally of Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban in 2001. Less than a month later, U.S. Warplanes attacked the Taliban. After barely six weeks of airstrikes, the Taliban was on the run, abandoning Kabul to afghan fighters allied with the U.S. In the years after their defeat the Taliban regrouped and fought back against new western-backed governments in Kabul. And now in its 15th year, the war against the Taliban has cost at least 2,380 American lives, killed tens of thousands of Afghan civilians and cost some $780-billion U.S. taxpayer dollars, according to one academic estimate. Yet, Afghanistan was barely discussed during the recent U.S. Presidential debates. Though Donald Trump did say this to CNN in October 2015. Trump: “I would leave the troops there, begrudgingly. I’m not happy about it, I will tell you, but I would leave the troops there begrudgingly yes.” There are currently around 9800 U.S. Troops stationed in Afghanistan, as well as more than 6,000 other foreign troops from the NATO military alliance. Most of the conflict is now being fought by afghan security forces…whose casualties this year reached an all-time high. Today...
Icc: Us Forces May Have Used Torture In Afghanistan
US armed forces and the CIA may have committed war crimes by torturing detainees in Afghanistan, the International Criminal Court (ICC) has said in a report. "Members of US armed forces appear to have subjected at least 61 detained persons to torture, cruel treatment, outrages upon personal dignity on the territory of Afghanistan between 1 May 2003 and 31 December 2014," says the report issued on Monday by Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda. The report added that CIA operatives may have subjected at least 27 detainees in Afghanistan, Poland, Romania and Lithuania to "torture, cruel treatment, outrages upon personal dignity and/or rape" between December 2002 and March 2008. Most of the alleged abuse happened in 2003-2004, and was allegedly part of "approved interrogation techniques in an attempt to extract 'actionable intelligence' from detainees". Prosecutors said they would decide "imminently" whether to seek authorisation to open a full-scale investigation in Afghanistan that could lead to war crimes charges. State Department spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau said the US does not believe an ICC investigation is "warranted or appropriate". "The United States is deeply committed to complying with the law of war, and we have a robust national system of investigation and accountability that more than meets international standards," Trudeau said. A Pentagon spokesman, Navy Captain Jeff Davis, said officials were awaiting more details about the ICC findings before commenting. If an investigation into the US army and the CIA goes ahead, it would be a very significant move by the ICC, according to David Bosco, who wrote a book about the ICC's role and function in global politics. "This would be the first time that the ICC has set its sights on US personnel and it does look like they are going to be focusing on the activities of the CIA in Afghanistan in 2003, 2004, which makes it a serious investigation of CIA interrogation practices in the wake of 9/11," he told Al Jazeera. "The...
Kremlin Confirms Taliban Ties, Says U.S’s Afghan Mission A Failure
Zamir Kabulov, Russia's Foreign Ministry's director of the Second Asian Department has declared the Taliban a potent armed political power, saying that the Taliban and Russia are bound by common ties in their campaign against Daesh in Afghanistan. He said that Russia completely agreed with the general perception that the U.S has no clear strategy in Afghanistan and it only has a military and political presence in the war-hit nation. "I agree with the view that America has no Afghanistan strategy. They have a single purpose, [which is] to exist in Afghanistan in terms of military and political. Afghanistan is geopolitically located in an important place to control China through Central Asia, Iran, Russia, and Pakistan. This situation naturally disturbs us". "Whether we accept it or not, the Taliban is a potent political armed force, but the question, if the group has the same power it had 15 years ago, should be asked from the U.S. There is an independent government in Afghanistan, because of this, foreign countries are responsible for the events that took place in the country in the past fifteen years. The current situation is the result of their (foreigners) wrong policies, but we can still resolve these problems," he said. Meanwhile, the European Union Special Representative for Afghanistan Franz-Michael Skjold Mellbin has said that Afghanistan has been the victim of regional rivalries. He said that regional players are trying to secure their own people at the expense of others. "I do hope that all regional actors understand that it is imperative to break off any kind of support to terrorist groups, whatever the strategic concerns are in the long run on these countries and the entire region including our own countries are threatened by terrorism in this region," said Mellbin. But the Kremlin argues that Russia and the Taliban are bound by common grounds in the war against Daesh. Kabulov confirmed that Russia has been in contact with the Taliban, saying these...
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I am also a member of National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting. Recently, we held a meeting with the Director General of Radio Pakistan and we told them to initiate such local programs (like Constituency Hour) in regional languages to educate and inform people. Even Indian Radio can be heard in FATA which is being used for propaganda purposes and must be closed. Therefore, we should launch some standard and quality programs like CRSS that will change the taste of the listeners.