Pakistan
The Insurgents of the Afghan North
05 May 2011
The rise of the Taleban, the self-abandonment of the Afghan government and the effects of ISAF’s ‘capture-and-kill campaign’:
In this report Antonio Giustozzi and Christoph Reuter describe the rise of the Taleban in northern Afghanistan. They discuss their recruitment and shadow administration, the conduct of the Afghan government, the effects of ISAF’s ‘capture-and-kill campaign’ and how all of this together contributes to a very unstable status...
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Backgrounder: Islam and Politics in Pakistan
05 May 2011
Since Pakistan's beginnings as a homeland for Muslims of British India in 1947, Islam has been the one thread creating a national identity in a state otherwise divided along ethnic, provincial, cultural, religious, class, and linguistic lines. Civilian and military leaders have used Islam to gain legitimacy for their rule and as tools of state policy, strengthening the role of religious parties in politics and society. Since the 1980s, following Pakistan's...
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Media and Governance in Pakistan: A Controversial yet Essential Relationship
04 May 2011
•The historical evolution of the media in Pakistan underlines an interesting state of affairs, whereby all the original owners of print media were individuals with a background in journalism and often with a defined political/nationalist agenda. However, since the electronic media liberalisation of 2002, the situation has changed, with many media owners operating purely according to commercial interests and with no professional attachment to journalism.
...
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Religious Institution Building in Afghanistan: An Exploration
03 May 2011
In 2006 the Government of Afghanistan initiated a process to modernize the curriculum and enhance the government’s oversight over the religious education institutions. So far the government’s achievements have been limited.
There exists not one religious education system in Afghanistan. Rather, the sector is characterized by a variety of educational institutions offering religious training at different levels. There is a clear divide between public...
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China and Pakistan: Emerging Strains in the Entente Cordiale
03 May 2011
Despite perceptions in Washington and New Delhi that China enjoys unique privileges and exercises inordinate influence in Pakistan, Beijing has shown little inclination to directly shape Pakistani behavior. As China’s global portfolio of economic and security interests expands, it is increasingly sensitive to new opportunity costs entailed in sustaining the Sino-Pakistani partnership. SOURCE: Project 2049 Institute
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The Paradox of Proximity: India’s Approach to Fragility in the Neighbourhood
29 April 2011
The risks posed by fragile states have moved to the centre-stage of Western security consciousness only in recent years, fundamentally as the result of globalisation and precipitously due to the 9/11 attacks on the United States.1 The threats posed by fragile states to the Western countries are palpable and proximate—for instance, in the form of terrorist plots, influx of refugees and organised crime—but the origins of the threats are relatively remote. Western...
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South Asia and Afghanistan: The Robust India-Pakistan Rivalry
29 April 2011
Is Afghanistan a playground for the India-Pakistan conflict? Or, are the countries in South Asia – Pakistan in particular – the recipients of unrest that spills over from Afghanistan? Alternatively, is the larger neighbourhood, South Asia and Afghanistan included, a mere victim of rivalry between global powers? Views on the relationship between Afghanistan and its neighbouring countries vary widely, with fundamental consequences for how one understands...
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PIPS Newsletter [Volume 3, Mar - May 2011 Issue]
28 April 2011
- Building Peace across Pak-Afghan Borders
- PIPS Launches Pak-Afghan Media Collaboration Initiative with Kabul Moot
- Dynamics of Unrest in Middle East and its Implications for Pakistan
- The Pakistan Phantasmagoria: Between Liberalism and Extremism
SOURCE: Pak Institute for Peace Studies
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Strained Alliances: Iran's Troubled Relations to Afghanistan and Pakistan
28 April 2011
This report offers a critical examination of Iran’s influence in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Two points are made: that Iran’s top priority is its own regime’s survival and its regional policies are directed by its national security concerns. Secondly, that Iran’s engagements in Afghanistan are clearly guided by the presence of the US. Iran’s predominant interest is in stabilizing Afghanistan, but as long as Afghanistan is neither safe nor stable, Iran...
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Lashkar-e-Taiba: Past Operations and Future Prospects
28 April 2011
Lashkar-e-Taiba (the Army of the Pure or LeT) is one of Pakistan’s oldest and most powerful jihadi groups. Yet despite its long and bloody history, LeT only began generating significant attention outside South Asia after launching a multi-target attack on the Indian city of Mumbai in November 2008. The boldness of the Mumbai attacks and target selection suggested LeT continued to prioritize jihad against India, but was moving deeper into al-Qaeda’s...
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