Nikkei Asia describes Prime Minister Imran Khan’s initiative that will send voters to the polls as “paving the way for South Asian nation's first 'foreign policy election.'” As everything having to do with politics in Pakistan is complex, though perhaps never as complex as it has...
Of late, statements from the highest level in Pakistan’s government have urged the global community to build a relationship with the country centered around “geoeconomic security.” The new policy posture is aimed at the Biden administration, but it appears in equal proportion in...
Imran Khan, the incoming prime minister, is about to find out just how complicated the job can be. Criticism over Pakistani efforts to combat money laundering and terrorism financing is likely to complicate incoming Prime Minister Imran Khan’s goal of tackling the country’s financial crisis....
Pakistan has a new prime minister-in-waiting, Imran Khan. Does China see him as a friend? Imran Khan’s ability to chart his own course, as well as his relationship with Pakistan’s powerful military, is likely to be tested the moment he walks into the prime minister’s office. Pakistan’s...
As the elections inch closer, the bar needs to be raised for democracy in Pakistan and the expectations that come with it. Civilian leaders being pushed out of office is the norm in Pakistan. With the recent ouster and sentencing of Nawaz Sharif, it is the third time that the former prime...
Following attacks in Quetta, the question is whether Pakistan can implement a security policy that makes a break with its past policies. On April 24, militants targeted Pakistani security forces in twin attacks in the troubled province of Baluchistan. The suicide bombings cast a light on a...
Is Pakistan advocating change with band aid solutions? Two recent news stories beg the question US officials have been grappling with for more than a decade: Will the real Pakistan please stand up? First, Pakistan’s The News reported that the government has designated Islamabad as a pilot...
Will Saudi Arabia’s Muslim coalition to fight terrorism succeed in its aim? The Saudi-led coalition to combat terrorism in the Muslim world — notwithstanding its diplomatic and economic bolstering by the Trump administration — will continue to persist as an extravagant delusion for several...
BRICS has potentially strengthened Donald Trump’s hand in tackling Pakistani support of militants. Pakistan, already furious and reeling from US President Donald Trump’s threat to sanction it for supporting militants, has been dealt a potential body blow out of left field. Five major...
After 70 years of independence, India is finally making headway against Pakistan in its proxy war on Kashmir. Kashmir is approaching an inflection point. The tide is turning with the relentless targeting of insurgents by Indian security forces. It is not merely the numbers that are impressive...
Treating men like Azhar and Saeed with kid gloves is unlikely to earn Pakistan any goodwill in Donald Trump’s Washington. China, at the behest of Pakistan, has for the second time this year prevented the United Nations from listing a prominent Pakistani militant as a globally designated...
In Kashmir, engaging the public is as important as secret negotiations. Indian and Pakistani diplomats tend to agree on one thing: A peace deal with their quarrelsome neighbor will need to be worked out under the cover of darkness through a so-called “back-channel.” Away from the blinding...
In this guest edition of The Interview, Vishal Manve talks to Biraj Patnaik, Amnesty International’s regional director for South Asia. Under the Trump administration, the focus on South and East Asia has increased significantly. From threatening North Korea and meeting Chinese President Xi...
English-speaking elites in Lutyens’ Delhi tragically aid and abet Pakistan’s longstanding designs to pry Kashmir away from India. On May 21, Fair Observer published an article by this author titled “Arundhati Roy, Please Do Not Support Pakistan’s Jihad in Kashmir.” It was republished...
Can the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor lead to a solution of the Kashmir crisis? After entering office, a good part of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s energy during his whirlwind international tours was spent trying to convince world leaders that Pakistan was a terrorist state in order...
