United States Vice President Joe Biden on Monday made an unannounced trip to Afghanistan to have an on ground assessment of the situation in the war-torn country, less than six months before the scheduled start of drawdown of American troops.
There's no rush to recognition from the United States or any country we have spoken with around the world. It will be very dependent on their behaviour and whether they deliver on what the expectations are of the global community, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters.
For Afghans in India, including medical tourists from the war-torn country as well as migrants and refugees staying here much longer, the safety of friends and families is the biggest concern - particularly for those linked to the now collapsed government or who have had work ties with the US.
The IS terror plot was foiled following the arrest of an Afghan suicide bomber, who had been under the surveillance of security agencies for long, in late 2017.
Nearly 60 per cent of Afghans want foreign troops to leave their country now or start leaving by next summer, the date originally promised by US President Barack Obama for the beginning of a pullout, according to a media poll.
'Holding on to superstardom is far more difficult than the struggle to get there.'
United States President Barack Obama has identified India, Pakistan and Afghanistan, and 17 other countries as major drug transit or a major illicit drug- producing nations of the world.
Top diplomats from Afghanistan and Pakistan engaged in verbal sparring during a discussion on cross-border terrorism and presence of terrorist safe havens, at the United Nations Security Council.
Among other things, presidents Pervez Musharraf and Hamid Karzai also discussed the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan- Pakistan gas pipeline project.
'Throughout the nearly 20-year US-led war, State sponsorship from Pakistan has been a constant.'
With former prime minister Imran Khan in jail, Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) is tipped to emerge as the single largest party in the elections.
The Afghan tradition of gaining control of areas does not necessarily involve combat. Most engagements are settled through negotiations and pay-offs before battle is joined. This style of fighting is peculiar to Afghanistan, explains Ajai Shukla, who witnessed such a transaction between the Taliban and the Northern Alliance in November 2001.
Robust military preparedness along the entire perimeter of our nation is the only iron-clad permanent guarantee for our security, asserts Vivek Gumaste.
India's aid comes to mind as Afghanistan script famous win
The new Afghan National Army would have balanced representations of all sects like Pushtuns, Tajiks, Uzbek, Hazara as well as smaller minorities like Ismailis.
Confederation of India Industry on Saturday welcomed the signing of Preferential Trade Agreement between India and Afghanistan and said this would facilitate easy flow of goods between the two countries.
Accusing Pakistan of harbouring Taliban and Al Qaeda militants, a top Afghan official on Monday said the global community is committing a blunder by embracing it as a strategic partner despite the fact that terrorism emanating from the region is affecting India, United Kingdom and others. "Unfortunately, the military-intelligence establishment of one of our neighbours still regards Afghanistan as its sphere of influence," Rangin Dadfar Spanta said.
On Sunday, after 13 years of war, over 500 deaths and over 20 billion, United Kingdom withdrew from Afghanistan. In a touching ceremony, the Union Jack flag was lowered at Camp Bastion, which has been the center of UK operations in Afghanistan since 2006. British Prime Minister David Cameron vowed that Britain will 'never forget those who made the ultimate sacrifice' and Labour leader Ed Miliband said the handover was a "time to remember those who have served Britain so courageously in Afghanistan over the last decade".
'It will remain hostile to Indian interests owing to its close proximity to China.'
Representatives from the United States and Qatar, the UN, China, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, the United Kingdom, the EU, Germany, India, Norway, Tajikistan, Turkey and Turkmenistan joined a regional conclave on Thursday to discuss ways to contain the escalating security situation in Afghanistan.
Categorically denying disciplinary issues as reason behind Ishan Kishan's non-selection into India's T20 squad to face Afghanistan, head coach Rahul Dravid on Wednesday said the left-hander will be back into national fold once he makes himself available for selection.
According to a Union home ministry notification, those Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians residing in the districts of Anand and Mehsana in Gujarat will be allowed registration as a citizen of India under Section 5 or will be granted certificate of naturalisation under section 6 of the Citizenship Act, 1955 and in accordance with the provisions of the Citizenship Rules, 2009.
Undeterred by last week's attack, India on Saturday declared that it will continue its developmental activities in Afghanistan without scaling down presence even as it suspended operations of its medical mission in Kabul hit by injuries to most of its members.
'The operation commanders of the Islamic Emirate (as Taliban movement calls itself) are going to meet shortly to finalise a new war strategy under which foreigners working on their national agendas, particularly Indians, will be targeted,' The News quoted Qari Ziaur Rehman, a Taliban commander, as saying.
The sources said India may be building small libraries as part of the community development initiative, but most of its investments in Afghanistan were on mega infrastructure projects including the 218 km road from Zaranj to Delaram, the Salma Dam and the new Afghan Parliament building.
The billions India invested in dams, schools, etc in Afghanistan will be gone. The Hindu and Sikh population of Afghanistan has already shrunk from some 200,000 to about 500, points out Rajeev Srinivasan.
United Nations Chief Ban Ki-Moon has called on Afghanistan's neighbours, Iran and Pakistan to help the country tackle threats of terrorism and drug trafficking in its transition to stability, saying their cooperation is "indispensable" to the country's peace.
However, Hyderabad had clearly done their homework as Rashid grabbed the top wicket-taker's 'purple cap' on Sunday after his 3-19 set up a comprehensive win over Gujarat Lions.
If Afghanistan is going to make any gains through democratic reforms, the newly elected president must start with addressing corruption at all levels of government and developing a comprehensive government financing plan independent of American support.
P B Chandra reports from Kabul on the Afghan presidential election, that has entered a run-off stage for the first time. The battle now is between the two frontrunners Abdullah Abdullah and Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai, with Abdullah holding the edge.
Pakistan's powerful Inter-Services Intelligence is providing safe haven to the Taliban leadership and the West need not mount a military operation to capture Mullah Omar as the elusive insurgent chief "is with them," according to Afghanistan's former spy chief.
Prisoners and suspects lodged in some of Afghanistan's detention facilities are subjected to "systematic" torture by intelligence services and police authorities, but the mistreatment is not an institutional or government policy, a United Nations report has said.
'It was a wonderful all-round effort by Afghanistan'
The future can only get better if we continue to break silos and work as integrated teams focussed on promoting national interests, recommends Sanjeev Nayyar.
Twenty to thirty rockets landed at Hamid Karzai International Airport in the centre of Kabul, Tolo news reported. There are no reports of causalities yet.
Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif arrives in the US on Tuesday and is likely to face pressure to bring the Taliban to the negotiating table.
Five soldiers were killed and 10 wounded, officials said. Two of the attackers blew themselves up, two were killed in fighting and one was captured.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday paid homage to the fallen soldiers at the newly-built National War Memorial in the nation's capital on the Republic Day for the first time instead of the Amar Jawan Jyoti beneath the India Gate arch.
