Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

cipherbrief

Welcome! Log in to stay connected and make the most of your experience.

Input clean

South Asia

Russia’s Taliban Embrace Signals a New Power Shift in Afghanistan

Sometimes the only thing more frightening than Afghanistan’s problems is the Taliban’s solutions and the recently signed Russia-Taliban [...] More

The Latest

The Delhi Blast and Pakistan’s Proxy War: Why Another Clash Looks Likely

South Asia has once again returned to the global spotlight after a suicide bombing struck the heart of India’s capital on November 10. The bomber [...] More

A Fragile Truce at the Durand Line: Will the Afghanistan–Pakistan Ceasefire Last?

One of the most enduring security issues in South Asia has been rekindled by the recent border conflicts between the Taliban-led Afghanistan and [...] More

Afghanistan Is Becoming India and Pakistan’s Proxy Battlefield—Again

On Oct. 15, 2025, Islamabad and Kabul announced a 48-hour ceasefire after days of shelling and cross-border clashes around Spin Boldak/Chaman and in [...] More

The Case for Caution in the U.S.-Pakistan Relationship

OPINION — During the ten-year Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, the United States leveraged Pakistan’s geostrategic position to support the Afghan [...] More

The Afghan Debacle Should Prompt China to Revise its South Asian Policy

The Afghan Debacle Should Prompt China to Revise its South Asian Policy

This piece was first published by RUSI in London. The views do not represent those of RUSI.EXPERT PERSPECTIVE — While China has tried to rebalance [...] More

Trends in Global Terrorism

Bottom Line Up FrontAccording to the U.S. State Department, global terrorism clustered in three regions in 2018, with South Asia, the Middle East, [...] More

Putin Flexes Russian Muscle Abroad

Bottom Line Up FrontVladimir Putin has consolidated Russian power in Moscow’s near abroad and traditional sphere of influence.The Kremlin has also [...] More

Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent: The Nucleus of Jihad in South Asia

Bottom Line Up FrontThe U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan will give terrorist groups like al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS) more room [...] More

Modi: Modernizing India

Modi: Modernizing India

In an announcement that caught many by surprise, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the government would discontinue its two largest currency [...] More

India: A Stronger Country with Stronger Relationships

Since becoming prime minister in 2014, Narendra Modi has pursued a more prominent and active role for India on the world stage in a bid to increase [...] More

The Opportunities and Pitfalls of Modinomics

Before becoming prime minister, Narendra Modi became famous for developing the “Gujarat Model” for economic growth. Despite being poor in tourism and [...] More

Water Security in South Asia: Running Dry and Running Out of Options

Water Security in South Asia: Running Dry and Running Out of Options

In the latest dispute between India and Pakistan, Islamabad has taken New Delhi to the International Court of Arbitration in The Hague over a [...] More