Taliban
India-Central Asia: Defence and Security Cooperation

Central Asia has emerged as an important geopolitical space after the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991. Its geostrategic location at the crossroads of East and West, South, Central, and West Asia has often resulted in the spread of...

Biden’s Executive Order on Afghan Funds

The Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021 prompted governments and international institutions to quickly freeze Afghan Central Bank assets abroad. Reportedly, about $7.1 bn of Afghan assets was held in the US.[1] On February 11, 2022, the...

Bamiyan Buddhas and Afghanistan’s Cultural Heritage

In Afghanistan, Buddhist cave temples are concentrated in three regions: Jalalabad (180 caves), Haibak (200 caves) and Bamiyan (1000 caves).[1] The Bamiyan Buddhas are part of a Buddhist site in Bamiyan Valley of Bamiyan River, 230km northwest of...

Developments in the US: A Review of 2021 and Emerging Trends Ahead

Amb. Arun K. Singh, Distinguished Fellow at the VIF, recaps and examines the key developments in the United States in 2021 while speculating on the trends to come for the year ahead and the implications of these events for India.

Likely Geopolitical Trends in 2022

We should expect a sharpening of great power rivalries and an increase in geopolitical tensions in 2022. If 2021 provides any indications, the world is likely to remain turbulent in the absence of credible mechanisms and effective cooperation to...

Afghanistan Mired in Uncertainty

Taliban after illegitmately wresting power in Afghanistan has entered its fourth month. However the country remains in chaos and at the edge of abyss. United Nations(UN) has warned that Afghanistan is on countdown to catasrophe and it is at the...

Random Thoughts 2021 - Emerging Paradigm Shift in the Changing Global, Political and Economic Order

Random Thoughts 2021 touches upon unusual range of subjects, namely from emerging civilisational, religious and historical issues; to out-of-the-box suggestions for astronomy-based education for conflict avoidance, to how liberal democracies are...

EU-Central Asia Relations: An Emerging Partnership

On November 5, European Union (EU) leaders met with prime minister-level Central Asian representatives in Bishkek for the inaugural EU-Central Asia Economic Forum. The delegation from the EU was led by Executive Vice-President and Trade Commissioner...

Choices: Why the Future of Afghan Sports Must Concern the World

News coming in from Afghanistan has been mostly unpleasant, rather concerning, for most of the country’s recent past – and most specifically since February this year. Amidst casting its shadow on all aspects of Afghan life – social, political, and...

Nepal’s Afghanistan Policy is gradually Acquiring Some Shape

When the Taliban captured the Afghan capital Kabul on August 15, Nepal was completely unprepared to face the unexpected situation that unfolded in the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) member. With the Taliban rapidly...

Contact Us