It is the agenda going forward that effectively puts a stamp over what the US assumes would be a Taliban-led, if not outright, Taliban government in Afghanistan, writes Shakti Sinha for South Asia Monitor

Although BIMSTEC has been gaining momentum in the recent past, it cannot be an alternative to SAARC, as it involves all the players in the region, including Pakistan, writes Samudrala VK for South Asia Monitor

RIC, a troika of the three Eurasian powers, can work extensively on issues like counter-terrorism, transnational organised crime, illicit drug trafficking and climate change, writes Samudrala VK for South Asia Monitor

What constituency Pakistan has in Capitol Hill is not known, but in putting up this deal, Pakistan has played its double game to the hilt, capitalizing on Trump’s pre-election promise of ‘bringing the boys home’, writes Lt Gen P C Katoch (retd) for South Asia Monitor

The requirement of a seven-day ‘reduction in violence’ for signing the deal was a joke that demonstrated abject surrender to the Taliban, writes Lt Gen PC Katoch (retd) for South Asia Monitor

If the adulation of Trump and the rally made it seem like India was the 51st state in Trump's re-election campaign, it may be because Modi bets on the re-election of a tough, right-wing hardliner with whom he shares some characteristics, writes Arul Louis for South Asia Monitor

In order to effectively “Act East” we must first try to “Learn East” once again to rediscover the opportunities for prosperity that lie therein, writes By Amb Sarva Chakravarti (retd) for South Asia Monitor

The LGBT issue is far from gaining social acceptability in a diverse and conservative society that India and much of South Asia is. But things are changing, writes Mahendra Ved for South Asia Monitor 

Today’s dispute (between India and Pakistan) is now less about Kashmir and Kashmiris and more about a river system with its headwaters in Kashmir writes Anuttama Banerji for South Asia Monitor

The present peace accord is fragile as there are several forces which are against the peace, and they may try to disrupt the agreement, writes Jai Kumar Verma for South Asia Monitor

For, what happened in the capital during the two days of the Trump visit, especially on the last day, was no less damaging to the Prime Minister’s reputation than the electoral setback, writes Amulya Ganguli for South Asia Monitor

The women of Shaheen Bagh at Delhi and their sisters at innumerable other locations all over India have changed the narrative of dissent... causing utter confusion of thought as well as action at the level of the Indian government, writes Dr Udai Vir Singh for South Asia Monitor

There is no incident in Bangladesh that can prove that any Bangladeshi has been persecuted by the government for his or her religious beliefs, writes Swadesh Roy for South Asia Monitor

The second largest and the fourth largest emitter of the green house gases are standing in the cusp of the most critical decade of the 21st century when they meet on 24-25 Februrary 2020 when the world is on the cusp of   environmental havoc due to climate change, writes Rajendra Shende for South Asia Monitor

When Nawaz Sharif was Prime Minister, Aziz had hailed and justified the terror attack on the Army Public School in Peshawar, where scores of students and teachers were killed, writes Mahendra Ved for South Asia Monitor