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Photo: Indian evacuation in Afghanistan. Source: DNA.

India Has Lost the First-Mover Advantage in Afghanistan

Viewpoint by Shastri Ramachandaran

NEW DELHI (IDN) — In the wake of the US retreat from Afghanistan, as the world’s leading nations engage with the Taliban in Kabul, India appears to have shot itself in the foot and gone into a sulk. When New Delhi does break its sullen silence, it only serves to remind the world of its seething animus against Pakistan.

As the regional superpower with unique civilisational connections and people-to-people ties with Afghanistan, India ought to have been a prominent player at this juncture of historic transition.

: Shastri Ramachandaran; SUSTAINABILITY; Peace & Justice; 27 August 2021

Photo: Flags of six CSTO member states. Source: Astana Times

Eurasian Military Alliance of Post-Soviet States Marks 30th Anniversary of Closure of Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test Site

By Radwan Jakeem

NEW YORK | NUR-SULTAN (IDN) — In a joint statement, the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), comprising six member states, has highlighted the role of Kazakhstan’s First President Nursultan Nazarbayev, whose decree shut down the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site on August 29, 1991.

The statement was published by the press service of the Kazakh Ministry of Foreign Affairs on August 26 in the run-up to the International Day against Nuclear Tests, which this year is commemorated on the 30th anniversary of the closure of the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site.

: Radwan Jakeem; SUSTAINABILITY; Peace & Justice; 27 August 2021

Photo: United Nations (UN) General Assembly hall at the UN Headquarters, New York City. CC BY-SA 2.0

Will Mandatory Vaccinations Apply to UN Staff & Diplomats?

By Thalif Deen

NEW YORK (IDN) — The rigid new restrictions imposed by New York city—currently facing a surge in the deadly Delta corona virus variant—have prompted scores of US companies to impose mandatory vaccinations on all employees, mostly returning to work after temporary lockdowns.

The mandate follows the approval on August 23 of the Pfizer vaccination by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) after a prolonged study of its effectiveness.

: Thalif Deen; UN INSIDER; 26 August 2021

Photo: View from the Herat Citadel, also known as the Citadel of Alexander the Great, in Afghanistan. CC BY 2.0

Would "Reformed" Taliban Respect Other Religions, Cultural Heritage and Non-Believers?

Viewpoint by Sugeeswara Senadhira

COLOMBO (IDN) — The Taliban’s fanatical yearning to attack everything opposed to what they mistakenly believe as Islam was displayed in two acts of destruction in the year 2001. The return of Taliban as rulers of Afghanistan raise question whether the remaining remnants of a Buddhist civilization in the region would be wiped out in coming years.

: Opinion Editor; SUSTAINABILITY; Peace & Justice; 26 August 2021

Photo: U.S.-Africa Business Summit. Credit: Corporate Council on Africa (CCA).

US Investors to Explore Opportunities in AfCFTA

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

MOSCOW (IDN) — United States investors are looking forward to exploring several opportunities in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), a policy signed by African countries to make the continent a single market.

Speaking at the 13th US-Africa Business Summit from July 27 to July 29, organised by the Corporate Council on Africa (CCA), a leading reputable American business association, the investors said there are ways the continent can benefit from them, including in sectors like pharmaceuticals, automobiles, agro-processing and financial technology.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; THE WORLD; Africa; 26 August 2021

Countries Around the World Are Still Ill-Prepared to Deal with Multiple Overlapping Crises

Viewpoint by Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana

Ms. Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana is the United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific (ESCAP).

BANGKOK (IDN) — Over the past two decades, the Asia-Pacific region has made remarkable progress in managing disaster risk. But countries can never let down their guard. The COVID-19 pandemic, with its epicentre now in Asia, and all its tragic consequences, has exposed the frailties of human societies in the face of powerful natural forces. As of mid-August 2021, Asian and Pacific countries had reported 65 million confirmed coronavirus cases and more than 1 million deaths.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 25 August 2021

Photo: US Sponsored Al Qaeda “Freedom Fighters” Were Used to Railroad the Formation of a Secular Socialist Government. Mohammad Najibullah, Former President of Afghanistan, in the centre. Source: Global Research

The Story of US-Led Collusion in Razing Afghanistan to the Ground

Viewpoint by John Pilger

This article was produced by Globetrotter. John Pilger is an award-winning Australian journalist, filmmaker, and author. Read his full biography on his website here, and follow him on Twitter: @JohnPilger. Source: Globetrotter

SYDNEY (IDN) — As a tsunami of crocodile tears engulfs Western politicians, history is suppressed. More than a generation ago, Afghanistan won its freedom, which the United States, Britain and their “allies” destroyed.

: Opinion Editor; SUSTAINABILITY; Peace & Justice; 25 August 2021

Photo: The ministers of foreign affairs of Germany, the United Kingdom, China, the United States, France, Russia, the European Union and Iran meeting in Geneva for the interim agreement on the Iranian nuclear programme (November 2013). Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Americans, Not the Europeans, Are Dilly-Dallying in The Iran Nuclear Deal

Viewpoint by Jonathan Power

LUND, Sweden (IDN) — The panic button on Iran is being pressed again. A report by the UN's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), suggests that Iran has taken more significant steps towards developing a nuclear weapon. At the same time the warnings from Israel are coming thick and fast, reminding us that if necessary Israel will bomb Iran's nuclear research facilities.

All this is grist for the mill for the doomsayers who say it won't be long before countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt decide to develop their own bomb.

: Jonathan Power; OPINION; 24 August 2021

Photo: New Zealand Hercules airlifts evacuees from Kabul. Credit: New Zealand Defence Force.

New Zealand Should Have Stayed Out of the War in Afghanistan

Viewpoint by Keith Locke

Former Green MP Keith Locke was the party’s foreign affairs spokesperson. He writes occasional pieces for Asia Pacific Report. This article was first published by The Spinoff, republished in Asia Pacific Report, our partner, on August 19 with the author’s permission.

WELLINGTON (IDN) — After the fall of Kabul, the obvious question for New Zealanders is whether we should ever have joined the American war in Afghanistan. Labour and National politicians, who sent our Special Forces there, will say yes.

The Greens, who opposed the war from the start, will say no.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 24 August 2021

Photo: Members of the disabled community play a game of football in Kayunga District, Uganda. UNICEF/Rebecca Vassie

Paralympics: An Incredible Medium to Create Awareness of the Disabled

Viewpoint by Simone Galimberti

Simone Galimberti is Author and Co-Founder of ENGAGE, a not-for-profit NGO in Nepal. He writes on volunteerism, social inclusion, youth development and regional integration as an engine to improve people’s lives.

KATHMANDU, Nepal (IDN) — Once again the limelight will be back on Tokyo as the city is hosting the Paralympics Games, another carnival of sports with the participation of about 4400 athletes from 160 countries and territories.