South East Asia

US troops begin leaving Afghanistan

The U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan has officially begun in line with President Biden’s order for all U.S. troops to be out by Sept. 11, the White House confirmed Thursday. “A drawdown is underway,” deputy White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters traveling on Air Force One. Biden ordered …

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Top US military intelligence official says Russian military poses an ‘existential threat’ to the US

The top US military intelligence official said during a congressional hearing on Thursday that the Russian military is an “existential threat” to the United States. “The Russian military is an existential threat to the United States,” Lt. Gen. Scott Berrier, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, said during a Senate …

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‘The Worst Seemed Very Far Away’: Andrew Exum on the Afghanistan War

Last week, U.S. President Joe Biden announced his decision to fully withdraw U.S. forces from Afghanistan by Sept.11. After 20 years and two generations of American service members fighting there, America’s longest war will come to an end. What will the legacy of that war be for the U.S. military? …

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China Is Extending Its Totalitarian Controls to the Rest of the World

In the Haidilao Hot Pot restaurant in… Vancouver, more than 60 surveillance cameras watch 30 tables and send feeds to China. The cameras, manager Ryan Pan explains, are there to “people track” and are “part of the social credit system in China.” In 2014, China’s State Council issued guidelines for …

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UK carrier strike group will sail to India on its maiden deployment

The UK’s Carrier Strike Group 2021, led by HMS Queen Elizabeth, will sail to India in the autumn on its maiden operational deployment. As a representation of the ‘Indo-Pacific tilt’ in the UK’s foreign policy, the HMS Queen Elizabeth Carrier – the largest ship ever built by the Royal Navy …

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US-China Cold War Could Lead To A More Dangerous Nuclear Stand-Off – OpEd

Despite the negotiation of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), we are confronted by the increasing dangers of great power war, even nuclear war. Instead of making necessary investments to ensure public health, reverse climate change and ensure the security of their peoples, trillions of dollars are …

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Afghanistan’s Green Future? – OpEd

Everyone has a different Doomsday scenario for Afghanistan once U.S. and NATO troops withdraw by September 11. The Taliban will take over and reimpose their repressive social agenda. Al-Qaeda will multiply rapidly and again become a global threat. Rival warlords will split apart the country. Another wave of Afghan refugees …

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China releases counter-espionage regulations

China’s Ministry of State Security on Monday issued regulations on counter-espionage security work, which take effect upon promulgation. Overseas espionage and intelligence agencies and hostile forces have intensified infiltration into China, and broadened their tactics of stealing secrets in various ways and in more fields, which poses a serious threat …

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China Encourages Companies to Invest in Afghanistan: Envoy

Chinese envoy in Kabul Wang Yu on Sunday said that cooperation between Afghanistan and China in the implementation of the Belt and Road initiative will benefit the people of the two countries. He said that Chinese companies will be encouraged to take part in Afghanistan’s reconstruction. Wang vowed his country’s …

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Govt Employee Killed in Gunmen Attack in Kabul

Ahmad Fawad Amiri, a government employee at the Presidential Palace, was killed in an attack by unidentified gunmen in Kabul on Saturday evening, a source said. The incident happened in Khawja Musafir area in Paghman district of Kabul when the government employee was on the way to a mosque on …

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