South Asia

South Asia

South Asia is home to over 1.8 billion people and the largest youth population in the world. It includes India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and the Maldives. As one of the fastest-growing regions in the world, it serves as a strong economic link between the East and the West. South Asia’s strong global connections make it a zone of opportunity for businesses and governments engaging in infrastructure development, trade, and economic development.

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Outside Intervention in Internal Wars

Issue Brief
Apr 1, 2025

Rescuing Pakistan’s economy

By
Aasim M. Husain

For decades, Pakistan has struggled with a declining standard of living, skyrocketing public debt, and economic policies that have failed to address the root causes of its stagnation.

Economy & Business
Middle East

Outside Intervention in Internal Wars

New Atlanticist
Mar 25, 2025

Starlink’s India launch is a crash course on New Delhi’s approach to tech sovereignty

By
Trisha Ray

A recently announced partnership to deploy the Elon Musk-led company’s satellite internet in India offers a window into New Delhi’s “hybrid” approach.

Economy & Business
India

Outside Intervention in Internal Wars

New Atlanticist
Feb 19, 2025

Why India and Armenia are now taking their relationship to new heights

By
Tatevik Khachatryan, Srujan Palkar

The growing military and diplomatic cooperation between New Delhi and Yerevan benefits both beyond immediate defense concerns.

Economy & Business
India

Programs

The South Asia Center is the hub for the Atlantic Council’s analysis of the political, social, geographical, and cultural diversity of the region. ​At the intersection of South Asia and its geopolitics, SAC cultivates dialogue to shape policy and forge ties between the region and the global community.

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Content

New Atlanticist

Aug 13, 2009

Outside Intervention in Internal Wars

By Don Snow

The most ignored but arguably the most important factor militating against American success in Afghanistan is the dynamic of outside intervention in internal wars. The experience of foreign countries intervening in other people’s civil conflicts is, to put it mildly, dismal.

Afghanistan

New Atlanticist

Aug 12, 2009

Afghanistan Debate Intensifies

By James Joyner

The U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan is the latest senior official calling for additional resources for the effort there.  Meanwhile, the debate over whether NATO should continue its mission at all has taken off.

Afghanistan NATO

New Atlanticist

Aug 12, 2009

How Secure are Pakistan’s Nukes?

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

Is Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal theft-proof? Former President Pervez Musharraf and his successor Asif Ali Zardari and their army and intelligence chiefs repeatedly have assured both the Bush and Obama administrations that their 80-odd nuclear weapons are as secure as the U.S. arsenal of some 7,000 city busters. The Pakistanis have separated warheads from delivery systems […]

Pakistan

New Atlanticist

Aug 4, 2009

Rasmussen: Afghanistan NATO’s Top Priority

By James Joyner

New NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen has wasted no time in signaling that the war in Afghanistan is the Alliance’s top priority, holding a teleconference on the conflict, reorganizing the mission’s command structure and calling for more EU help in his first days on the job.

Afghanistan NATO

New Atlanticist

Jul 30, 2009

Taliban an Unflippable Enemy

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

Geopolitical trendies ran a new one up the international flagpole to see if anyone saluted. It claimed to be the magic formula on “How to Win in Afghanistan.”

Afghanistan Pakistan

New Atlanticist

Jul 29, 2009

British Conservatives Back Away from Afghanistan

By Steve Hynd

In two scathing op-eds today, the conservative Daily Mail set out a framework for British conservative thinking on the ongoing Afghanistan occupation which is seriously at odds with their American cousins.

Afghanistan United Kingdom

New Atlanticist

Jul 28, 2009

Afghanistan Exit Scenario?

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

At the beginning of 2009 Gen. David Petraeus, the new CENTCOM commander, assumed command of a huge theater that stretches from the Horn of Africa to Saudi Arabia, the Persian Gulf, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan, right up to the Indian border.

Afghanistan

New Atlanticist

Jul 20, 2009

UK’s Afghanistan Patience Waning

By James Joyner

July has been the deadliest month so far for American forces in Afghanistan, with 55 killed already this month.  Despite the trend toward Americanization of the conflict, however, today’s crash of a RAF Tornado fighter brought the month’s toll to 19 British troops killed.  Given the extreme controversy over the war in the UK, that […]

Afghanistan United Kingdom

New Atlanticist

Jul 20, 2009

Will COIN Work in Afghanistan?

By Don Snow

The Obama administration has invested a great deal (one can argue too much) of its national security capital in the war on Afghanistan, and the chief instrument for realizing that investment has been the application of counterinsurgency (COIN) doctrine to the situation. This application, in turn, is based on putting into action the Army and […]

Afghanistan

New Atlanticist

Jul 10, 2009

Afghanistan Caveats Coming to End?

By James Joyner

General John Craddock, the outgoing SACEUR, says the caveats that constrain how some countries’ NATO forces are used “increase the risk to every service member deployed in Afghanistan and bring increased risk to mission success” and are “a detriment to effective command and control.” 

Afghanistan
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Experts

Fellow

Grace Abuhamad

Nonresident Fellow

Digital Forensic Research Lab

Digital Policy Internet

Fellow

Elliot Ackerman

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Afghanistan Defense Policy

Fellow

Paul Amato

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Missile Defense Nuclear Deterrence

Fellow

Peter Arvo

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Freedom and Prosperity Center

China Human Rights

Staff

Rayhan Asat

Former Senior Legal & Policy Advisor, China Lead

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Central Asia China

Fellow

Kyle Atwell

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Afghanistan Colombia
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