Afghanistan

Using Afghanistan’s Frozen Funds to Pay 9/11 Families Could Backfire

On Feb. 11, U.S. President Joe Biden issued an executive order that proposed a plan for the $7 billion of frozen Afghan reserves that have been locked up in U.S. financial institutions since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in August. Half was to be placed in a trust that would …

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World Refugees Day

The world has been witnessing difficult situation for the refugees, living across the world due to ongoing global military conflicts. The ultimate targets, who suffered more in this situation, are refugees, be it Afghan or others. 20 June is an international day designated by the UN to honor refugees around …

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Uzbekistan Navigates Relations with Afghanistan

Uzbekistan has sought to engage the Taliban leadership in Afghanistan to ensure its cooperation against Islamist extremist opposition groups. Uzbekistan’s leaders are not demanding that the Taliban include Afghan-Uzbek factions in its governing structure. An extremist opposition group, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), is an ally of Islamic State …

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Afghan refugees in Albania, forgotten and facing eviction

Afghan refugees staying in the Albanian coastal city of Shengjin until their visas for the US and other countries are processed say they are facing eviction, having their passports confiscated, and that many of the NGOs that were helping them have left. After western troops pulled out of Kabul in …

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Tajikistan Seeks Security Partners against Afghanistan-based Threats

Leaders in Tajikistan are wrestling with increasingly complex threats posed by the Taliban regime and cross border attacks by Islamic State Khorasan Province (IS-K) fighters. The hostile relationship with the Taliban is a function, in part, of Tajikistan’s longstanding support for Afghan Tajiks and other opponents of the Taliban regime. …

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US rejects entry to 16 Afghans staying at base in Kosovo, seeks to relocate them to other countries

A group of 16 Afghan evacuees living at an American military base in Kosovo since the fall of their country to the Taliban last year have been deemed ineligible to enter the U.S., according to media reports and government officials. The State Department is seeking other countries willing to take …

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After Afghanistan, EU Crisis Intervention Should Go Big, Not Go Home

It is difficult to speak of European ambitions for international crisis management against the backdrop of the images from Kabul over the past few weeks, which seem to tell a story of the failure of Western interventionist policies. But that discussion is urgently needed. Yes, it will be necessary to …

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Taliban Dissolve Government Departments Over Budget Crisis

The Taliban have dissolved Afghanistan’s Human Rights Commission, and four other government departments, citing a budget crisis. The cuts were announced on Monday, days after the Taliban announced their first annual national budget. Afghanistan’s budget deficit for this year is $501 million. At the time of the announcement, Taliban officials …

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Border Clashes Mar the Taliban’s Regional Relationships

Clashes on Afghanistan’s border with both Pakistan and Iran signify an end to the relative wary regional calm that has prevailed since the Taliban returned to power in Kabul. Pakistan perceives that the Taliban de facto authorities of Afghanistan are sympathetic to Pakistani militants that threaten Pakistan’s stability. Any tensions …

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