Afghanistan’s tumultuous landscape has been further shaped by the return to power of the Taliban in August 2021. The return marked a pivotal moment in the country’s history. Since their resurgence, the Taliban have imposed stringent policies that have significantly impacted the sociopolitical fabric of Afghanistan. The evolving dynamics of the narcotics trade and the … Read more
In the wake of the Taliban’s rise to power, a critical aspect of Afghanistan’s socioeconomic landscape has been absent from discussions: the urban middle class. The middle class in Kabul and the rest of Afghanistan’s cities have had to cope with radical institutional changes and persistent economic shocks since the Taliban takeover in August 2021. … Read more
A recent response from a U.S. government watchdog to a Congressional request for a report on the Afghan Fund underscores considerable barriers surrounding the future of the fund’s $3.5 billion, half of the $7 billion in Afghan central bank assets seized by the United States in the wake of the Afghan Republic’s collapse in August … Read more
In Afghanistan, a desolate landscape almost entirely secluded from the rest of the world and burdened by starvation and severe climate changes, my father finds comfort in embracing hope. For my father, an Afghan educator in his 70s, who intermittently engages in bookkeeping and gardening, contingent upon his health, dreary post-retirement mornings commence with switching … Read more
The Pulse | Economy | South Asia The Taliban are focusing on the countries that are most likely to be interested in investing in Afghanistan, notwithstanding its human rights record or potential for violence. Advertisement While the West is adamant about isolating the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, owing to its human rights record, the latter is having some success … Read more
Advertisement The Diplomat author Mercy Kuo regularly engages subject-matter experts, policy practitioners, and strategic thinkers across the globe for their diverse insights into U.S. Asia policy. This conversation with Claudia Chia – an independent researcher and former research analyst at the Institute of South Asia Studies at the National University of Singapore ̶ is the … Read more
Advertisement China’s investments in Afghanistan have been growing in recent years, as Beijing expands its economic and political influence in the country. In January 2023, a Chinese company signed a $450 million deal to explore and develop oil reserves in northern Afghanistan. In April, the Taliban regime announced they were in discussions with a Chinese … Read more