First some fantastic news this morning: Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson and James Robinson have won the Nobel memorial prize in economic science for their work on institutions. I hope to write more about those ideas when I have a chance, but for more that I’ve written already (lots more!) on the theory of power in Acemoglu and Johnson’s most recent […]

On the night of August 25-26, 2024, the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), a secessionist group fighting for the independence of Balochistan from Pakistan, launched Operation Herof (“Black Storm”), a series of coordinated terror attacks and suicide bombings on a Pakistani army camp, police stations, and other targets, killing dozens of Pakistani soldiers and police officers.[1] BLA executed the Operation Herof […]

In a Dari-language booklet, the Islamic State Khurasan Province (ISKP) accuses the Saudi government of promoting indecency in the “land of revelation,” especially by organizing concerts and criticizes Islamic religious scholars for doing what the royal government tells them to do. A PDF of the 32-page booklet, titled “The Height Of Indecency In The Land Of Revelation,” was released on […]

Summary Introduction India is home to some two hundred million Muslims, one of the world’s largest Muslim populations but a minority in the predominantly Hindu country. Since India’s independence, Muslims have often faced discrimination, prejudice, and violence, despite constitutional protections. Experts say anti-Muslim sentiments have heightened under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party […]

Although China’s ambition to gain control of Taiwan is clear, doing so through force would prove enormously difficult and costly. Although China continues to state a preference for unifying with Taiwan through peaceful methods, it has never renounced using force. Indeed, for the past two decades its military modernization has focused on developing capabilities that would enable it to forcefully […]

Here’s the full interview that I gave to The Media Line’s Arshad Mehmood, excerpts of which were included in his report about how “Moscow’s Move To Delist Taliban Faces Skepticism Over IS-KP Threats”. Russia’s promised delisting of the Taliban as a terrorist organization is unable to bring stability to the region on its own, but it can help improve the […]

Increasingly intensifying U.S. economic sanctions targeting Russia’s financial system have deepened concerns in China over its extensive dollar asset holdings and the Chinese financial system’s reliance on dollars. Increasingly intensifying U.S. economic sanctions targeting Russia’s financial system have deepened concerns in China over its extensive dollar asset holdings and the Chinese financial system’s reliance on dollars. Worries that a similar […]

As China’s influence expands and its assertiveness increases in Southeast Asia, regional powers, particularly Japan, encounter growing pressure to establish a robust collective security framework. Some scholars and policymakers propose the creation of an “Asian NATO” to counterbalance perceived threats from China and to uphold regional peace and stability. However, while China’s military presence and expansionist policies indeed present challenges […]

In the complex socio-political landscape of Pakistan, the Jirga system has long been an integral part of conflict resolution, especially in the tribal regions of the Pashtun belt. This traditional assembly, which brings together elders and community members to mediate disputes and administer justice, has served as a peaceful mechanism for addressing issues within these communities. The Pakistani government, recognizing […]

It’s an established fact that Pakistani speakers at the United Nations General Assembly [UNGA] repeatedly serve the same old wine brewed by infusing the Kashmir issue with the Palestine problem with a generous sprinkling of institutionalised persecution of Muslims in India with Islamophobia every year. Consequently, people with little appetite or patience for listening to a litany of repetitive remonstrations […]