Why the Taliban Won’t Cut Ties with Iran
Two weeks ago, the Taliban cautioned the United States to refrain from making further demands, reservations and excuses. A few days earlier, the insurgent group expressed frustration […]
Regional Affairs
The Shrinking Space for Cultural Diplomacy between India and Pakistan
In a world where power is no longer determined solely by military might, cultural diplomacy leverages a country’s identity, values, and traditions to “strengthen relationships, […]
Regional Fallout of India’s Citizenship Amendment Act
In December, both houses of the Indian Parliament passed and the president signed the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), 2019, a legislation modifying the Citizenship Act, […]
China, India, and Bangladesh’s Contentious Water Politics
In 2016, Ashfaqul Chowdhury examined China, India, and Bangladesh’s disparate priorities with respect to the Brahmaputra River, which has generated mutual distrust among them and complicated […]
How the Kuala Lumpur Summit Complicates India’s Gulf Relations
In the last weeks of December 2019, leaders from five key Muslims nations—Malaysia, Turkey, Qatar, Iran, and Indonesia—met in Kuala Lumpur in a bid to […]
Year in Review: Bangladesh in 2019
As Bangladesh embarks into 2020, the country stands at a critical juncture on its growth trajectory. Some of its key economic indicators went awry in […]
Geopolitics of Indian Ocean Islands in 2019: Takeaways for Traditional Powers
China’s rapidly expanding presence in the Indian Ocean in recent years underlines the emergence of Beijing as a new player in the region. Increasing Sino-Indian […]
Most recent
Ignoring Balochistan Amidst Fears of a CPEC Slowdown
On November 5, Balochistan’s Chief Minister Jam Kamal Khan attended the 9th Joint Cooperation Committee (JCC) meeting in Islamabad, in which the Gwadar Master Plan […]
Looking Back at 2019: SAV’s Most Popular Reads
2019 was an eventful year in South Asia. From countries in the region dealing with the aftermath of the United States announcing the withdrawal of […]
Pakistan and China in 2019: Straying Apart, Staying Together
2019 has been an uneasy year in Pakistan-China relations, marred by policy divergences and measured recalibration. On Pakistan’s part, the policy divergences emanate from domestic […]
Understanding the Indo-Pacific: A Case of Two Rivalries
The concept of the Indo-Pacific has emerged from an evolving mental map of the increasingly contiguous Indian and Pacific Oceans, as well as the growing […]
India-Bangladesh Relations: Risks of a Fallout Over the NRC
When Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina met her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi in New Delhi last month, she raised concerns over the National Register of […]
Non-Traditional Security Implications of Climate Change in Bangladesh
As Bangladesh recovers from the second mega cyclone of the year, following Cyclone Fani in May, the impacts of climate change have never been more […]
The Kartarpur Corridor and Its Impact on Indo-Pak Relations
On October 24, officials from the Indian and Pakistani governments met at the zero point on the International Border to sign an agreement operationalizing the […]
Climate Change in India and South Asia: Intensifying Local Grievances
One of the most critical global challenges in the coming years is the existential threat humans face from climate change. While climate change is a […]
Lex Talionis: Is India’s Foreign Policy Acquiring a New Dimension with Turkey’s Censure?
Just a few days after U.S. President Donald Trump announced his plans to withdraw troops from northeastern Syria, Turkish President Erdogan ordered his forces to […]
In Pakistan, Climate Change is the Primary Threat to National Security
Between July and September this year, 235 Pakistanis lost their lives and another 169 suffered injuries due to the current monsoon spell. On the other […]