South East Asia

It is generally recognized that any discussion on South Asia without reference to India would be putting the cart before the horse.

In the article Why France and India Are Natural Partners, Antonia Collabasanu (July 20 2034-Geopolitical Futures) has emphasized the importance of Franco-Indian collaboration as a preeminent feature of Indian politico-economic interest, despite India’s isolationist policy that it has been following since the adoption of non-alignment as the country’s foreign policy anchor ever since independence from British domination in 1948. Antonio Collabasanu writes in her article that France is a natural strategic ally to India. India’s relative isolation from the rest of the world – with no imposed borders, a large and dense population, and a central government having no choice but to deal with a broad subcontinent – has resulted in a country formed of shifting systems that continuously challenge central authority. This divided landscape has historically made it easier for foreign powers, most notably the British, to conquer it. India’s birth as a modern state in the early 1950s was New Delhi’s first lesson in how shifting economics may alter political realities. Traditionally, Indian security threats have come either from the Afghanistan-Pakistan border or from the sea.

Introduction
The agreement signed between the United States and the Taliban on February 29, 2020 aimed to withdraw most U.S. troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2021. This withdrawal would result in certain factions of the Taliban gaining a larger role in Afghan politics, raising concerns for India. Indian assets in Afghanistan have been targeted by the Haqqani group, a major Taliban faction, and India’s investments in the country were protected by the presence of U.S.-led troops and the stability they brought.

Abstract: Despite dominating the headlines for almost a decade, surprisingly little is known about the Islamic State’s internal organization. After the declaration of the caliphate in June 2014, the organization’s center of gravity rested in the offices of the caliph and the spokesman and the Delegated Committee. Yet, with the deaths of successive caliphs, the territorial demise in the Levant, and the growing importance of its external provinces, the General Directorate of Provinces has emerged as the organization’s most decisive body. This is the first exhaustive account of the Islamic State’s most important, yet little understood, institution.

Pakistan’s security landscape has become increasingly volatile, as evidenced by the recent spate of attacks on military bases and law enforcement officers. A newly emerged group, Tehreek-e-Jihad Pakistan (TJP), has claimed responsibility for a brazen assault on a military base in Northern Balochistan, resulting in casualties among soldiers.

The cold war has never ended after the bifurcation of the former USSR rather it has taken a new shape by entering new players into the arena. The world has now converted from unipolar to multipolar world with the rising China. Along with other areas of the world the Middle East has become a new battlefield of cold war between America and China.

When the BRICS was initiated, it was an organisation meant to express a new geopolitical will as against the Western geopolitical order. Meanwhile, it has become expression of hopes and desires for economic development, progress, representation in international fora and the need to contribute and play a role in defining the global agenda and finding solutions to global issues.

Viruses worm their way into living cells, change the structure of the host cells from within, take over the cells’ reproductive process, use the cells’ own machinery to make copies of themselves, and conquer and kill the host. Routine antibiotics do not work while fighting viruses. You need a molecule that prevents the process by which the virus duplicates itself, or you need a vaccine to make your cells vigilant to such viruses and treat it as a foreign object.

Afghan refugees have been a significant concern for Pakistan over the past several years, with their impact projected to intensify in the coming years. As these refugees flee conflict in their homeland, they are forming a large and growing population in Pakistan, particularly in the region of Baluchistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.