South Asia

September, 2023

  • 26 September

    Book Review: The Tribal Pakhtun as ‘Fixer’

    Going by the warlike history of the region, journalism and the fixer within it become “short term slavery” in the service of relentless imperialist forces that have long kept the region unstable.

  • 19 September

    US Policy of ‘Pragmatic Engagement’ Risks Legitimatizing Taliban Rule

    The Biden administration has a choice: Try to keep the Doha deal alive by pressuring the Taliban into intra-Afghan talks, or accept that the deal is now dead. Either way, “pragmatic engagement” with the Taliban has shown itself to be wanting.

  • 2 September

    U.S.-Pakistan Diplomacy: Balancing Defense Ties Amid Democratic Dilemmas

    Should Ogles’ amendment gain traction and ultimately pass, it stands to overshadow the intentions and potential benefits of the CIS-MOA. Such an outcome would stress the intricacies and nuances of international diplomacy, showcasing how geopolitical strategies and the pursuit of democratic values can sometimes clash, mostly to the detriment of a country like Pakistan.

August, 2023

  • 17 August

    Why Afghanistan Still Poses a Threat to the Region and Beyond

    Two years on from taking control of Afghanistan the Taliban continues to rule through fear and threatens the stability of the whole region.

July, 2023

  • 12 July

    Ambitious Solar Project to Join String of Coal Plants in Pakistan’s Thar District

    UK-based Oracle Power tells The Third Pole about a new solar project in the Thar desert, where the company is already exploring coal, as locals express skepticism about tall promises.

June, 2023

  • 22 June

    Locust Outbreak in Afghanistan Threatens Major Food Crisis

    For nearly 30 years, Mullah Khan Mohammad has worked his family’s land in Surkh Kotal – near the great archaeological site of the same name – in Baghlan province. Baghlan, in northern Afghanistan, is known as the country’s breadbasket due to its significant wheat production. “Since we returned [in the early 1990s, after the Soviet-Afghanistan war], we have been cultivating …

May, 2023

  • 25 May

    Explainer: A Historical Trail of Pakistan’s Powerful Military Enterprise

    akistan’s former military chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa declared at the end of his tenure the military would no longer meddle in politics. However, the recent arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan – once seen as the “army’s blue-eyed boy” – and the army’s intention to prosecute civilian protesters under military laws proves the men in uniform are still …

April, 2023

  • 30 April

    What Would it Take to Recognize the Taliban?

    ince the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021, speculation has been rife over whether the group would achieve the global recognition that has long eluded it. Early on, analysts predicted that in a quest for legitimacy, a reformed Taliban, whose rhetoric promised a modern and moderate approach to governance, would honor basic human rights and prevent Afghanistan from again becoming …

March, 2023

  • 31 March

    Explaining the Resurgence of Terrorist Violence in Pakistan

    s Pakistan reliving the scary specter of 2013? It may be — the last quarter of 2022 set the tone for the ensuing months, with December ending off the year as the deadliest month for Pakistan’s security forces in over a decade. Around 282 military and police personnel were among the 973 total fatalities in 2022. At the center of …

  • 14 March

    Confronting Climate Change — and the Taliban — in Afghanistan

    his past December, a fleet of colorful swan-shaped boats lined the muddy banks of Qargha Lake, a reservoir on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan. The boats’ owner, 50-year-old Shah Maqsoud Habibi, said his business has vanished, along with much of the lake, a once popular weekend destination for war weary Afghans. Over the past few years, a series of droughts …