South and Central Asia Comment

Pakistan politician Zahra Shahid Hussain killed in Karachi | BBC

Faiz — Sat, 18 May 2013 22:57:26 +0000

“Zahra Shahid Hussain was the senior vice-president of Pakistan’s Movement for Justice party (PTI), led by former international cricketer Imran Khan. … Sunday’s partial re-run of the vote in Karachi was ordered after Mr Khan’s party accused the MQM of widespread vote-rigging and intimidation.”

Two bombs strike complex housing Afghan elite | Al Jazeera English

Faiz — Fri, 17 May 2013 23:50:42 +0000

“Aino Mina is home to thousands of Afghan government officials, businessmen and other wealthy citizens who pay around $90,000 for a three-bedroom house on grounds featuring parks, a jogging track and a football field. Residents have special identification badges, and cars are typically searched before entering the gates. … President Karzai’s office quickly condemned the attack, noting it was the second such strike in a residential area in two days. A suicide car bomber hit a US convey in a residential part of eastern Kabul on Thursday, killing 15 people, including nine Afghan bystanders and six Americans.”

Pakistan: Turning Over a New Leaf? | Counter Punch

Faiz — Tue, 14 May 2013 23:33:26 +0000

“On the surface, [it's] a win-win for Sharif, Khan, Pakistan, and even the West, which very much needs a stable government there. But Sharif, prime minister for the third time (having served from 1990–1993 and 1997–1999), has loads of baggage: his love of neoliberal trickle-down economics, his close ties with Saudi Arabia, his abiding interest in closer links with Central Asia republics (echoes of past regimes’ regional hegemonic designs).”

Two Candidates Shake Up Iran’s Presidential Race as Last-Minute Entries | The New York Times

Faiz — Mon, 13 May 2013 21:42:47 +0000

“Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, a protégé of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and former President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who was soundly defeated by Mr. Ahmadinejad in the 2005 election, arrived simultaneously at the Interior Ministry headquarters in the capital, Tehran, to register. … Mr. Mashaei represents a new generation of politicians, defined by the president, who seem determined to to oust older leaders from power. … Mr. Rafsanjani, on the other hand, has cast himself as a pragmatist, calling for a more open society and better business relationships with the West.”

Faiz — Thu, 09 May 2013 20:37:24 +0000

“Among the most prominent Taliban hostages is Shahbaz Taseer, the son of assassinated Punjab governor Salman Taseer, who was snatched in Lahore in 2011 and remains in captivity. … The run-up to the 11 May elections has been marred by a series of attacks across the country in which more than 100 people have been killed.”

Deadly clashes break out in Northern Iraq

Stephanie — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 13:20:23 +0000

“Iraq’s ministry of defence said, in a statement, that 20 armed men were killed along with three army personnel – one officer and two soldiers – in the blasts. The statement also said that the armed men used protesters as cover, and that the army has arrested 75 “fighters” and seized 40 rifles, plus grenades.” – Al Jazeera

How Pervez Musharraf’s story has gone from Facebook fantasy to farce | The Guardian

Faiz — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 13:22:51 +0000

“It was only after Pervez Musharraf received hundreds of thousands of “likes” on his Facebook page that he decided to cast himself in the role of civilian saviour and ride back into town just in time to contest the upcoming May elections.”

The Turkey, Russia, Iran Nexus

Sergei — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 18:20:28 +0000

This report presents the key findings of an 18-month CSIS project to assess the forces and interests shaping relations among Turkey, Russia, and Iran; the strategies that these governments are pursuing to manage differences and sustain cooperation; and, how these dynamics are influencing regional developments in the Eastern Mediterranean, Caucasus, and Central Asia. – Center for Strategic and International Studies, Washington, DC

The United States and Central Asia after 2014

Sergei — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 22:35:39 +0000

“The planned U.S. withdrawal of military forces from Afghanistan in 2014 demands that the United States recast its foreign policy toward Central Asia. For more than a decade since 9/11, U.S. policy toward Central Asian states has been dominated by the exigencies of the war in Afghanistan, including notably military bases in the region and facilitation of military supplies for U.S. and allied troops in Afghanistan. The war has provided a real agenda for concrete cooperation with Central Asian states and even promoted some regional cooperation, but it has also skewed U.S. interests, not to ignore, but certainly to de-emphasize the endemic problems of governance and corruption, as well as serious human rights violations. The scaling down of the military effort in Afghanistan creates an opportunity for the United States to review and likely rebalance its Central Asia policy, but it also has sparked regional fears of a near total U.S. disengagement that Central Asian elites believe will result in increased threats to their security, as well as diminish their sovereignty vis-à-vis major powers, notably Russia and China.” – Jeffrey Mankoff, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Washington, DC

Iran urged to strengthen presence in SCO

Sergei — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 16:58:54 +0000

Chairman of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Business Council Marat Sharshekeev has called for stronger presence of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the council, Press TV reports. During a meeting with Iranian Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan Ali Najafi on Saturday, Sharshekeev pointed to Iran’s membership in major regional organizations, namely the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) and Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and underlined the need for exploitation of Iran’s potential in the SCO Business Council. Najafi, for his part, referred to Iran’s presence in the SCO summits and called for further involvement of Iranian businessmen and entrepreneurs in the SCO Business Council.