Asia

By Kambaiz Rafi and Scott Lucas | – In late August 2021, the US completed its withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, ending a 20-year occupation. The Taliban retook the country with shocking speed. The Islamic fundamentalist political group was founded in 1994 and controlled most of Afghanistan until the US-led campaign ousted it in 2001. […]

China

Countdown to World War III with China?

Michael T. Klare

( Tomdispatch.com ) – When the Department of Defense released its annual report on Chinese military strength in early November, one claim generated headlines around the world. By 2030, it suggested, China would probably have 1,000 nuclear warheads — three times more than at present and enough to pose a substantial threat to the United […]

Afghanistan

After America: The Russo-Turkish Tango in Afghanistan

Nikola Mikovic

The Kremlin is making overtures to the new Taliban government in Afghanistan. On October 21, at a meeting of the Valdai Club, President Vladimir Putin said that Russia is close to removing the Taliban from the list of terrorists, which could be interpreted as part of the Kremlin’s hot and cold game with the Taliban. […]

Afghanistan

What my 20 years in Afghanistan taught me about the Taliban – and how the west consistently underestimates them

The Conversation

By Sippi Azarbaijani Moghaddam | – It was April 1995, and I was preparing to travel to Afghanistan for my first volunteer post with a UK charity. I had travelled to London to meet the Afghanistan director for the non-governmental organisation (NGO) I was going to be working for and now sat in their tiny […]

Afghanistan

Under Harsh Taliban Rule and Boycotted by International Donors, Afghanistan is becoming Hell on Earth

contributors

By Liam Felloni | – Bristol, UK (Special to Informed Comment) – Ninety days into the Taliban takeover, the situation in the country is worsening by the minute. Since Afghanistan is no longer backed by Western governments, and the Taliban government is heavily sanctioned, the country is on the verge of famine. As hunger rises […]

Bangladesh

Bangladesh Cyclone: Mental Health Distress Shows Devastation of Climate Emergency

The Conversation

By Sonja Ayeb-Karlsson | – Over the past decade, there has been growing recognition of climate-induced loss and damage – such as the destruction of homes or buildings after a flood. However, economic losses and damages have received far more attention than their non-economic counterparts. These non-economic losses and damages cannot be measured in monetary […]

China

Ours won’t be the new American Century or the Chinese Century but that of Catastrophic Climate Change

Alfred W. McCoy

( Tomdispatch.com) – When the leaders of more than 100 nations gathered in Glasgow for the U.N. climate conference last week, there was much discussion about the disastrous effect of climate change on the global environment. There was, however, little awareness of its likely political impact on the current world order that made such an […]

Australasia

North America needs to invest in Green Energy in Indo-Pacific or Risk losing key Industry to China

The Conversation

By Jonas Goldman | – The Indo-Pacific region, which includes 24 nations and stretches from Australia to Japan and from India to the U.S. west coast, is home to both the largest concentration of humanity and the greatest source of global emissions. In 2020, the region produced 16.75 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide from the […]

China

As Biden and Xi Zoom, the Iran issue Looms

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – President Joe Biden and his counterpart Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke for half an hour on Monday by video, as Biden attempted to establish “guard rails” in the relationship of the two countries so that tensions do not spiral out of control. Biden is a status quo president, attempting to […]