... more precise shape, which translated into the development of a roadmap at the Group’s scheduled meeting in Bishkek in April.
Alexey Kupriyanov:
BRICS, SCO and Kashmir Terrorism
The continuing deterioration of the situation in the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan breathed new life (at Russia’s suggestion) into the work of the Contact Group two years ago. The heads of state of the Shanghai 8 decided to develop a roadmap, a decision that has practical value that appears particularly relevant today, as there are plans to launch a peace ...
....
Stages of Jihadism
The first stage of Jihadism, present from 1979 to 1997, was centered around both a jihad against the Soviets in Afghanistan and the possibility for Sunni groups to contain Iranian influence at the time. It was effective against Russia in Afghanistan, but this phase was not very successful elsewhere and failed in Algeria, Chechnya, and Egypt. Phase one was characterized by a “nearby” enemy, which jihadist groups in their earliest form of organization fought against hoping to establish ...
The Working Group on the Future of U.S.-Russia Relations’ Report
Central Asia stands out as a comparatively “nontoxic” region where there are limited, but not insignificant, opportunities for U.S.-Russia collaboration both bilaterally and within multilateral frameworks: in the space ...
... Affairs Council.
On April 23, 2019, Dr.Zafar Iqbal Cheema, President of Strategic Vision, Pakistani research institute, visited Russian International Affairs Council.
The following issues were discussed in the course of the meeting: opportunities for expanding ... ... possible multilateral nuclear arms control mechanisms in Asia, and likely scenarios for the development of the situation in Afghanistan.
... addition, Tajikistan will hold
joint exercises
with the CSTO peacekeeping forces "Unbreakable brotherhood-2019".
Though Moscow has intercepted the American negotiating agenda, it wasn’t repeated.
According to
the special representative of Russian President for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov, the "Moscow format" is about national reconciliation within Afghanistan, while the negotiations between the Americans and the Taliban are about the further presence or withdrawal of foreign troops.
Thus, both the U....
... exercises as well. Pakistan will appreciate a more active role by Russia in the region in addition to China which has been a close ally. The mutual efforts of Russia and Pakistan can be very useful in furtherance peace in Afghanistan.
There are groups in Afghanistan with whom Russia had cordial relations in the past. Major terror threat to the region comes from ISIS in Afghanistan. Hopefully, joint efforts by regional countries will be quite fruitful in eliminating IS from Afghanistan as it is against the security interests ...
... approaching Eid al-Adha (Kurban Bairam) Festival spurred renewed attempts to achieve a truce, but to no avail. In the meantime, Pakistan got a new prime minister, whom his enemies have dubbed Imran “Taliban” Khan.
On Sunday, President Ashraf Ghani of Afghanistan announced a temporary ceasefire with the radical Taliban (banned in the Russian Federation) on the occasion of the Eid al-Adha (Kurban Bairam) Festival. Moreover, his office proposed a three-month long truce, which, given the real state of affairs on the ground, looked quite ambitious.
Ruslan Mamedov:
Revival of the Caliphate: ...
... applying pressure (including political pressure) on India, which is critically dependent on energy imports. Finally, Iran’s energy partnership with China could transform into a political partnership, effectively cutting India off from Central Asia and Afghanistan.
There are also a number of potential threats for Russia. The country could see its business opportunities in the Indian market narrowed and might end up with Europe and China as its two key gas consumers. Russian companies would end up being restricted to India’s LNG segment, in which they do not ...
... place in Beijing on the eve of the Qingdao summit. However, serious interest in increasing the SCO’s activities regarding Afghanistan expressed at the meetings has not yet been substantively documented (as a result of which the Declaration merely “summed ... ... time being remains rather vague and lacking in real content. The Qingdao Declaration drew particular attention to this fact.
Russia and other SCO states (with the exception of India, a fact also reflected in the meeting’s final document) generally support ...
... have been missed in the last 30 years.
How would you characterise the Russia-Pakistan relationship?
Pakistan is an important player, we want to be involved, have a relationship with them. But they are not in the same category as China or India.
Is Russia supporting Taliban in Afghanistan?
We are playing a very complicated game – sometimes we support somebody, sometimes we help somebody else. Taliban is also different. When we saw the US going in with ground troops we were aghast. That was a disaster. Now it’s different ...
