Out of Necessity
One word sums up U.S.-Pakistan relationship: necessity. The United States and the world have seen the instability that resulted from non-engagement in the 1990’s: Afghanistan […] More
Pakistan
The Taliban Resurgence
On May 1, 2003, U.S. President George W. Bush delivered his infamous “Mission Accomplished” speech declaring, “In the battle of Afghanistan, we destroyed the Taliban, […] More
Same Name, Different Agendas
Although the Taliban organizations in Afghanistan and Pakistan share the same name, they operate as independent organizations under separate leadership structures. Jeffery Eggers, former Special […] More
A Gloomy Prospect for Real Negotiation
A negotiated peace settlement in Afghanistan in 2016 is unlikely. Negotiations have succeeded in other insurgencies when each side determined that victory was not possible […] More
The US and India: Strengthening Security Cooperation
As China, the current economic superpower of the East, becomes increasingly unstable and its markets unpredictable, many are focusing newfound attention southward on India. With […] More
Security and Stability in Afghanistan
With the international community focused on the expanding threat from ISIS, the persistent threat the Taliban poses to stability in Afghanistan seems to be getting […] More
The Role Pakistan Plays
Conventional wisdom expected the Taliban to pose a security challenge following the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO troops from Afghanistan. The Obama Administration and Afghan […] More
Don’t Give Up on Afghanistan
By all accounts, the security situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated sharply since U.S. and NATO troops ended combat operations in December 2014. The Taliban control […] More
Improving Bilateral Relations
Former Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Teresita Schaffer, discussed with The Cipher Brief the continued importance of a close U.S.-India relationship. Schaffer explained India’s tenuous security […] More
Prioritizing American Engagement
Recent efforts by Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi have resurrected the idea of rapprochement between India and Pakistan. So […] More
Extending Beijing’s Commercial Reach
On Saturday, Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Iran, the last stop on a whirlwind tour of the Middle East, which included visits to Egypt […] More
China’s Role in the Middle East
President Xi Jinxing’s visit to the Middle East last week appeared to be business as usual. Short and relatively low-key, his studious avoidance of controversy […] More
The China-India Relationship
The Himalayan mountain range separates the world’s two most populous states, India and China, whose rapidly expanding economies are instrumental in the ongoing shift of […] More
The View from India
India and China agree that the global political architecture is undergoing a fundamental transformation with gravity increasingly shifting from the Atlantic to Indo-Pacific. Both have […] More
The View from China
India and China, two of the oldest civilizations, had friendly relations and learned from each other in history. As Rabindranath Tagore put it, “China and […] More
The View from the U.S.
At least since the end of the Cold War, U.S. policymakers and analysts have devoted considerable thought to the dissonance between existing international institutions and […] More
Islam and the West
Having spent some years living in Muslim countries and fighting terrorism, I always cock an eyebrow when I hear someone like Secretary of State John […] More
Stability in South Asia
It’s one of, if not the most, dangerous border in the world. Nuclear-armed powers, India and Pakistan, have a history of strained relations since their […] More