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Afghanistan

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The Afghan Taliban's interior ministry spokesperson said the United States had withdrawn bounties on Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani and two other members of the Haqqani network, Abdul Aziz Haqqani and Yahya Haqqani, AP reported on March 23.

U.S., Afghanistan: Afghan Taliban Says U.S. Withdrew Bounties on Senior Figures

Pakistan

Military & Security

Pakistani security forces near the border with Afganistan arrested Mohammad Sharifullah, a top Islamic State Khorasan Province commander and alleged plotter of the deadly 2021 bombing at Afghanistan's Kabul airport, after a tipoff from the CIA, Dawn reported on March 5. 

Pakistan, U.S.: Pakistan Arrests Plotter of Kabul Airport Bombing After U.S. Tipoff

Japan

Around six Afghan Taliban officials (purportedly deputy ministers from Afghanistan's ministries of foreign affairs, education, economy and health) arrived in Japan on Feb. 16 for a weeklong visit, The Asahi Shimbun reported on Feb. 18.

Afghanistan, Japan: Afghan Taliban Make First Visit to Japan Since 2021 Takeover

Iran

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met on Jan. 26 with top Afghan Taliban officials in Kabul, Afghanistan, marking the first visit by an Iranian foreign minister to Afghanistan's capital since 2017, AP reported Jan. 27.

Afghanistan, Iran: Iranian Foreign Minister Makes First Visit to Kabul Since 2017

India

Afghanistan's foreign ministry called India a "significant regional and economic partner" after Afghanistan's acting foreign minister met with India's foreign secretary in Dubai on Jan. 8 in the highest-level talks the two sides have held since the Afghan Taliban retook Afghanistan in August 2021, Reuters reported on Jan. 9. 

India, Afghanistan: Afghan Taliban Calls India 'Significant Partner' After High-Level Meeting

The head of the Afghan Taliban's political office in Qatar said the group does not intend to escalate after border clashes erupted with Pakistani forces following Pakistan's Dec. 24 airstrikes on alleged Afghanistan-based militants, but that further Pakistani "escalation" would prompt the Afghan Taliban to undertake "measured retaliation," Bloomberg reported on Dec. 31.

Afghanistan, Pakistan: Afghan Taliban Official Says Group Seeks De-Escalation After Retaliating Against Pakistani Strikes

Pakistan's Foreign Office acknowledged Dec. 26 that the country had carried out ''operations in border areas,'' days after Pakistan's reported Dec. 24 airstrikes on alleged Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan camps in Afghanistan's Paktika province, Dawn reported Dec. 26.

Pakistan: Country Confirms It Conducted Airstrikes on Militant Camps in Afghanistan

China

Beijing's envoy to Afghanistan said in an Oct. 24 post on X that China will offer the Afghan Taliban tariff-free access to its construction, energy and consumer sectors, Reuters reported on Oct. 25.

Afghanistan, China: Beijing To Offer Taliban Tariff-Free Trade

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The lobby of the headquarters for the U.S. Agency for International Development is seen on Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington, D.C. 

Social Issues

Cuts to U.S.-funded humanitarian and development programs could worsen global health outcomes, destabilize security environments, accelerate democratic backsliding, and create opportunities for rival powers to expand their influence.

The Global Implications of Trump's Foreign Aid Cuts

Taliban security personnel inspect a car damaged by Pakistani air strikes in Afghanistan's eastern Paktika province on Dec. 26, 2024. 

While the TTP may not completely follow through on its recent threats, its attacks in Pakistan are set to escalate.

Afghanistan and Pakistan's Deadlock Portends Worsened TTP Attacks

Turkey

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The Geopolitics of Water

Energy

Environment, Science & Technology

Science & Technology

The escalating impacts of climate change and water scarcity will inflame tensions between Central Asian countries, raising the risk of violent state conflict in the coming decades. 

The Geopolitics of Water: The Looming Threat of Central Asian 'Water Wars'

A man looks at damage from a Balochistan Liberation Army attack Jan. 30 in central Bolan district in Balochistan province, Pakistan. Economic and political constraints will limit the scale and efficacy of Pakistan's latest counterterrorism campaign, sustaining the threat of militant attacks and delays to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor despite likely efforts to bolster foreigners' security and engagement with key foreign stakeholders.

Economic and political constraints will limit the scale and efficacy of Pakistan's latest counterterrorism campaign, sustaining the threat of militant attacks and delays to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor despite likely efforts to bolster foreigners' security and engagement with key foreign stakeholders.

The Implications of Pakistan's Renewed Counterterrorism Campaign

Tajikistan

A delegation of Afghan Taliban officials walks down a hotel lobby in Doha, Qatar, in August 2021. 

A combination of security considerations and economic opportunities will continue to ease the Afghan Taliban's international isolation in the years ahead, but many countries will remain wary of close relations with the group or its formal recognition.

The Afghan Taliban's International Isolation Appears To Be Easing

Snapshots

Emergency services vehicles are seen outside the burning Crocus City Hall concert hall following a shooting incident in Krasnogorsk, outside Moscow, Russia, on March 22, 2024. 

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

While the attack was likely conducted by Islamist extremists or North Caucasian groups, the Kremlin will nonetheless use the mass casualty incident to further villainize Ukraine and the West, and expand its war efforts against Kyiv.

What To Make of the Deadly Terrorist Attack in Moscow

Afghan refugees arrive at the Chaman border crossing in Pakistan before departing for Afghanistan on Nov. 4, 2023. 

Islamabad's push to send Afghan migrants back home will likely worsen security threats in Pakistan, while further destabilizing Afghanistan and potentially the broader region.

The Implications of Pakistan's Deportation Drive and New Cross-Border Travel Policy

Media

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Cyber

What Q3 security risks should companies expect and prepare for?

Essential Geopolitics: An Overview of RANE's Q3 Forecast

Qatar

Qatar's then deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani (center), speaks during a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in Washington D.C. on Feb. 10, 2023. 

The meeting suggests the Taliban may be willing to compromise on some issues, but such talks are unlikely to yield significant change in Afghanistan anytime soon. 

What to Make of the Rare Meeting Between the Taliban’s Leader and Qatar's Prime Minister

What risks does the Taliban face as the fighting season begins?

Essential Geopolitics: Recent Security Developments in Afghanistan

Central Asia is reemerging as a key region for trans-Eurasian trade, but not without complications.

Applied Geopolitics: Central Asia's Geopolitical Challenges

Afghanistan's acting Deputy Prime Minister, Abdul Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, (L) and China's Ambassador to Afghanistan, Wang Yu, (R) attend a press conference to announce an oil extraction contract with a Chinese company in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Jan. 5, 2023.

China's investment in Afghanistan may be modest, but it is key to the South Asian nation's economic recovery.

The Future of Chinese Investment in Afghanistan

<p>Afghanistan is a landlocked country in South Asia bordering China, Pakistan, Iran, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. Spanning over 652,000 square miles, the majority-Muslim country&#39;s geography can be divided into the highlands, the northern plains and the southwestern plateau. Mountains are Afghanistan&#39;s dominant geographic feature, with the Hindu Kush range running at a southwestern angle and roughly dividing the country in half. The four most important cities are the capital Kabul in the east, Kandahar in the south, Herat in the west, and Mazar-i-Sharif in the north. Because of its location, the country functions as a bridge between energy-rich Central Asia and energy-deficient South Asia. Afghanistan&#39;s primary geographic challenge is resisting the intervention of outside powers while also maintaining authority over a mostly rural society spread across a rugged landscape. Afghanistan&#39;s location at the crossroads of the Middle East, Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent has historically invited external actors, resulting in a country containing diverse languages, cultures and ethnicities. Indeed, Afghan society includes significant populations of Pashtun, Tajiks, Turkmens, Uzbeks and Hazaras. Each of these groups share populations in a neighboring country, encouraging external involvement. The borders of modern-day Afghanistan were drawn during the 19th century to carve out a space between the British and Russian empires. Afghanistan&#39;s most contentious boundary is with Pakistan and is called the Durand Line. Afghanistan disputes the border, claiming that its true boundary should absorb Pakistan&#39;s Pashtun-majority region. This fuels the antagonism between the two countries and plays a role in Afghanistan&#39;s broader challenge of asserting sovereignty as outside actors try to advance their own interests.</p>

SITUATION REPORTS

U.S., Afghanistan: Afghan Taliban Says U.S. Withdrew Bounties on Senior Figures

Pakistan, U.S.: Pakistan Arrests Plotter of Kabul Airport Bombing After U.S. Tipoff

Afghanistan, Japan: Afghan Taliban Make First Visit to Japan Since 2021 Takeover

Afghanistan, Iran: Iranian Foreign Minister Makes First Visit to Kabul Since 2017

India, Afghanistan: Afghan Taliban Calls India 'Significant Partner' After High-Level Meeting

Afghanistan, Pakistan: Afghan Taliban Official Says Group Seeks De-Escalation After Retaliating Against Pakistani Strikes

Pakistan: Country Confirms It Conducted Airstrikes on Militant Camps in Afghanistan

Afghanistan, China: Beijing To Offer Taliban Tariff-Free Trade

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