Category: Timely Commentary & Analysis

The US-Pakistan relationship in a new Afghanistan

By Hashim Pasha

Now that the American venture into Afghanistan is coming to be seen by some as a serious strategic failure, there is a strong temptation for US policymakers to find something, or someone, to blame.

Heat is killing us—and the economy too

Most people know the knock-on effects of global warming by now: rising sea levels, mass extinction of plants and wildlife, worsening floods, fires, and hurricanes. But heat itself is too often overlooked as a destructive force in its own right.

A moral consideration of the Taliban’s legitimacy

By Nilofar Sakhi

After the collapse of Ashraf Ghani's government and the return of Taliban, the country faces multiple challenges including humanitarian crisis and Taliban legitimacy. The international community should use aid as a leverage to pressure Taliban to form an inclusive government and address humanitarian issues.

What Afghanistan’s fall means for the future of NATO and Turkey

By Atlantic Council IN TURKEY

Former Turkish Ambassador Alper Coşkun joins the Atlantic Council IN TURKEY to discuss the implications of recent developments in Afghanistan to the NATO alliance and the future of Turkey's foreign policy and engagement with Afghanistan.

The 5×5—Cyber capacity and conflict in Africa

By Simon Handler

We brought together a panel of contributors with various perspectives on the region to break down the state of cybersecurity in Africa and explore where investments in cyber capacity could go the furthest.

David Petraeus: ‘The Taliban are about to be acquainted with a very harsh reality—that they are broke’

By Atlantic Council

General David Petraeus told the Atlantic Council that it is time to recognize a new reality and to move forward after Afghanistan. But, he says, the United States still has an opportunity to influence the Taliban.

Event recap: “On the frontline: Protecting Afghanistan’s human rights defenders”

By Areeba Atique

On August 5th, 2021, the Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center, held a discussion with some of Afghanistan’s leading human rights defenders (HRDs) and experts to explore what lies ahead for the activists who put their lives on the line to fight impunity, militancy, and violence.