Here are three Afghan-related pieces I read recently that I want to comment on: 1. MountainRunner.us, Tom Broun Tom Broun, a US military officer assigned to NATO, discusses the implications of the ongoing ‘Why Afghanistan Matters’ contest being hosted on Twitter, Facebook, and Youtube on a guest post for Mountainrunner.us. Broun analyzes the media coverage […]
Russia and Italy just go together. Because Italy had the warmest relations with the Soviet Union of any Nato member state, Russia’s best-selling car was based on a Fiat and manufactured in a town named after the head of the Italian Communist Party. But it’s no longer movies, Ladas and socialism that keep the two […]
‘Opposition supporters who attended the Friday Prayer service in Tehran had responded to calls to chant “Death to America!” by chanting “Death to Russia!” instead’, Robert Mackey writes in today’s New York Times blog. Though I completely agree with the commenter who noted ‘I’m not sure that “Death to Russia!” is the best way to […]
That question, asked at Russia’s opposition newspaper Novaya Gazeta back in 2006, after the murder of Anna Politkovskaya, was answered on Wednesday with the slaying of human rights activist Natalya Estemirova. “Who is to blame for Natalya’s murder?”, asks Oleg Orlov, head of Moscow-based Memorial. “His name is Ramzan Kadyrov.” Indeed, writes the Christian Science […]
President Nursultan Nazarbaev recently signed a new law placing blogs, social media networks, and chatrooms under the rubric of “mass media”, effectively creating criminal liability for users of these internet communication platforms and permitting the government to shut down and censor websites as it sees fit. The government denies this law as being any kind […]
It becomes tougher and tougher to read my Afghanistan related news feeds as it is becoming filled with reports of NATO and American casualties: Britain, which lost 8 of its soldiers in just a few days, has been doing some of the toughest fighting trying to capture Taliban-controlled districts in Helmand Province. Though there has […]
History is important. It shows us what was tried in the past and how well it succeeded or failed. It is for this reason, I bring you Patrick Devenny’s (no relation) analysis of Captain Charles Trower’s, a British cavalry officer who attempted to corral Pashtuns for the British Empire, memoirs. Trower was in charge of […]
When Putin imprisoned Mikhail Khodorkovsky for wanting to sell parts of his oil business to the West, he was criticised abroad for political interference in the energy market. What to make then of the EU and US cheerleading for Nabucco, a pipeline with no economic rationale being built solely for the political reason of isolating […]
In the past week, British soldiers fighting to takeover and hold Helmand Province from the Taliban have faced mounting casualties and it is no surprise that the folks back home are showing signs of being rattled. The British military lost 10 soldiers in the past week alone and the nation’s total of men killed in […]
Dilip Hiro’s new book, Inside Central Asia, provides an up to date look at Central Asia, Turkey, and Iran. Hiro is an expert on India and the Middle East and has written more than 30 books. Inside Central Asia is aimed at those needing a quick rundown (~400 pages) of the region, whether they are […]
‘What kind of future are Russia and America going to have together? What world order will replace the Cold War?’, asked Obama in Moscow. ‘Those questions still don’t have clear answers’. Today’s New York Times described America”s new style of diplomacy as one in which ‘yesterday’s enemies may become tomorrow’s partners in the benign exercise […]
“We reaffirm our commitment to the goals of the common fight against the threats of terrorism, armed extremism, and illegal drug trafficking in Afghanistan. We shall continue and develop our cooperation in the interest of enhancing the capabilities of the government of Afghanistan to accomplish key socioeconomic objectives, to raise living standards, and to ensure […]
Much of the Western media has portrayed Kyrgyzstan’s decision to permit US troops to use Manas Air Base as a surprise turnaround, painting Kyrgyz president Kurmanbek S. Bayikev as a crafty little leader, capable of pandering to both Russia and the United States as it suits him. Although I have no wish to demean President […]
Just a day after most US troops vacated Iraqi cities, signaling the beginning of the end of the American military presence in Iraq, American forces launched one of their largest offensive campaigns in Afghanistan. Approximately 4,000 marines partnered with helicopters and armored convoys made a major push into the Taliban dominated Helmand Province yesterday in […]
Almost exactly a year ago, one lucky Russian family received a free brand new SUV from the government. What had they done to deserve such a gift? They managed to have a baby on Russia Day – June 12th. That much publicised campaign was only the tip of a creepy pro-natalist iceberg, including $11o00 cash […]