TO: The UN secretary-generalFROM: Laurie Nathan and Nilofar SakhiSUBJECT: Establish a UN conflict prevention mechanism for the Afghanistan region SHARE MEMO BY EMAIL DOWNLOAD PDF What does the UN secretary-general need to know? Our “memo to…” series has the answer with briefings on the world’s most pressing issues from our experts, drawing on their experience advising the highest levels of government. Bottom line up
On Monday, Pakistan launched airstrikes against several suspected hideouts of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in Afghanistan’s Khost and Paktika provinces. The Afghan Taliban responded by firing on Pakistani positions along the border, according to the Afghan defense ministry. Pakistan’s defense and foreign ministries called the strikes on Afghanistan “retaliatory,” likely referring to the suicide bombing
On January 16, Iran’s armed forces launched several missile and drone attacks against Iraq, Syria, and Pakistan, leaving several civilians dead, including children, in both Iraq and Pakistan. The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) boasted that the strikes were in defense of Iran’s national security and in response to several attacks that had killed Iranian
Pakistan-Iran relations nosedived sharply on January 16, when Tehran carried out unilateral strikes in western Pakistan, following its recent attacks in Iraq and Syria. In turn, Pakistan adopted a two-stage strategy: First, it downgraded diplomatic ties with Tehran by recalling its ambassador. Then, forty-eight-hours after the attack, it conducted retaliatory strikes inside southeastern Iran, targeting
On Tuesday, Iran used missiles and drones to strike western Pakistan near Koh-e-Sabz. On Thursday, Pakistan conducted airstrikes in southeastern Iran near Saravan, then released a statement claiming that “Iran is a brotherly country.” More than a sibling squabble is going on here. Iran and Pakistan were apparently targeting hideouts of armed non-state actors—Jaish al-Adl
When Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine began in early 2022, many did not anticipate that the courage and tenacity of the Ukrainian people would be able to hold out against Russian President Vladimir Putin, let alone put his regime on the defensive. But as the Ukrainians dug in and the democratic world rallied to their
