India-Pakistan: The pros and cons of backchannel diplomacy
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The Indian and Pakistan flags fly during a ceremony at the Wagah Border. Photo: AFP
The door of peace between Pakistan and India leads through backchannel negotiations and both countries have successfully used it to bring about substantial confidence-building measures.
For any backchannel negotiation to have sustainable long-term impact, however, it has to be used sparingly and with the mission of initiating a bilateral dialogue or it can threaten the entire fabric of the peace process.
According to media reports, Pakistan and India have been conducting these backchannel talks on and off since 2017, whereby New Delhi initiated a request to start a backchannel and Pakistan responded positively.
(Last Updated On: May 4, 2021)
President Ashraf Ghani said Tuesday that five government departments have failed to use over $1.6 billion of their annual budget.
Addressing an event on the occasion of Education Week, Ghani stated the “blockage of billions of dollars” by these government departments is not acceptable.
Ghani stressed that if any department or government organization failed to utilize its budget within one year, “the budget for the office will be distributed (allocated) to other departments.”
“We do not have room to waste money,” Ghani said.
According to him, two departments have failed to spend a total of $1.6 billion.
Meanwhile, Ghani stated that conflict and insecurity has resulted in $1 billion in damage to the infrastructure in Afghanistan, including to that in the education sector, in the past year.
(Last Updated On: May 4, 2021)
Taliban militants have made worrying progress towards the gates of three provincial capitals in the country in the past 24 hours, Afghan officials said.
According to officials, Taliban gains across territory came after they launched coordinated attacks in Helmand, Ghazni, and Zabul provinces in this time.
In Helmand, Taliban fighters carried out attacks on the outskirts of the provincial capital Lashkargah city just two days after the US forces withdrew from a local base. However, some sources claim clashes are ongoing inside the city.
Officials from the provincial public hospital said on Tuesday that at least 30 wounded people including five women were taken to the hospital in the past 24 hours.
(Last Updated On: May 4, 2021)
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani says President Joe Biden’s decision to withdraw the remaining 2,500 U.S. troops from Afghanistan by September represents a turning point for the country and its neighbors.
In an article written by Ghani for Foreign Affairs, he says the Afghan government respects the decision to withdraw troops “and views it as a moment of both opportunity and risk for itself, for Afghans, for the Taliban, and for the region.”
“For me, as the elected leader of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, it is another opportunity to reiterate and further my commitment to peace. In February 2018, I made an unconditional offer of peace to the Taliban. That was followed by a three-day cease-fire in June of that year.
(Last Updated On: May 4, 2021)
The members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) have condemned last week’s attack in Logar that resulted in the death of 21 people.
In a statement issued by the council’s president Zhang Jun, the UNSC said it “condemned in the strongest terms the atrocious and cowardly terrorist attack that took place at Pul-e Alam in Logar province, Afghanistan, on 30 April 2021.
“The attack, which took place during the month of Ramadan, resulted in at least 21 people killed, including high school students, and more than 100 civilians wounded,” read the statement.
The members of the Security Council expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims and to the Afghan government and they wished a speedy and full recovery to those who were injured.