When the Taliban came face-to-face with the Afghan government

Six members were waiting as the doors opened and their counterparts entered the room.

It was an awkward moment. After nearly 20 years of violence, Afghan leaders and the Taliban were meeting face-to-face, adamant to defend their agendas behind closed doors.

Some of those in attendance were jailed by the Taliban, some tortured by Afghan intelligence and then foreign troops. Some have had loved ones killed recently by the opposing side, others have spent their lives in prison in Afghanistan and abroad. How did it go? TO READ FULL ARTICLE CLICK HERE.

Before being banned, ULFA leaders had sought UK support, reveal declassified papers

Revealed in documents newly declassified by the National Archives of the UK, the meeting of the three top ULFA functionaries – Anup Chetia (real name Golap Barua), Siddhartha Phukan (real name Sunil Nath) and Iqbal (real name Munin Nabis) – with the diplomat, David Austin, took place on October 2, 1990.

After the meeting, Austin reported to London with a note that the ULFA was inspired by Israel. TO READ FULL ARTICLE CLICK HERE. 

Flashpoint fear as China menaces India’s north-east

China appears poised for fresh incursions into Indian territories 3,200km east of Ladakh where it has reached a stalemate after its first invasion in May. It is reported to be increasing its troops in south Tibet across from India’s Arunachal Pradesh state.

Arunachal Pradesh is of critical strategic importance since it is the main buffer between China and the remaining six other mountainous north-eastern states. Some of the seven states have in the past been infiltrated by terrorists based in and trained by China and Myanmar. Also, the entire north-east is connected to the Indian peninsula by just a 20km wide area between Nepal and Bangladesh. TO READ FULL ARTICLE CLICK HERE.

Modi's supply chain fantasies will not save India's failing economy
Delhi Ill-prepared For Japan's Supply Chain Resilience Initiative To Rival China

International supply chain cooperation requires open trade regimes -- a point that Australia, India, and Japan agree on -- that allow inputs, intermediates, and finished merchandise to cross borders efficiently and seamlessly. That's a huge hurdle for India, with its increasingly protectionist stance, to jump.

Yes, increased Japanese investment in India can play a major role in boosting India's manufacturing credentials. But before that can happen, Modi would have to undertake a major overhaul of the country's regulatory regime, and junk the trade protectionism that has proved so popular with crony businesses. TO READ FULL ARTICLE CLICK HERE. 

India-China Tensions
Who blinked first?

https://southasianmonitor.net/en/south-asian-brief/india-china-tensions 

IN FOCUS

Islamophobia in the US presidential election

Trump's alliance with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi calls for obvious parallels between the two, particularly around their overt policies of Islamophobia. This was most apparent during Trump's February visit to India, during which sectarian violence in the streets of New Delhi revealed the ugly reality of Hindu supremacy in India. A Trump victory is sure to see the right-wing alliance between the two nations flourish.

Also there is little to suggest that Harris's biracial identity would be a sign of progress. In fact, a Biden presidency will likely mean a continuation of Trump-era support for Modi's ethnonationalist project of Hindutva, an ideology that has been calamitous for Muslims and caste-oppressed Indians. TO READ FULL ARTICLE CLICK HERE. 

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