Tariq Saeedi Jake Sullivan, the national security advisor to President Joe Biden has announced that the United States intends to review the Afghan peace deal. The apparent purpose is to check whether the Taliban were living up to the pledges they made. It is a loaded statement. —– Does the ‘review’ include the option to […]
American policies creating new stress points – Neutrality is the only viable option Central Asia
Tariq Saeedi Central Asia is simultaneously blessed and cursed by its geography. Except for the soviet period, Central Asia has traditionally seen endless streams of people and cargo moving in all directions. The transit potential has been a dependable source of its prosperity. The region is at the heart of the Eurasian landmass. — The […]
If this is a rules-based world, what are the rules?
Tariq Saeedi US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Saturday (15 February 2020) at the Munich Security Conference that Russia and China were ‘destabilizing the rules-based international system.’ Speaking immediately after him, the US Secretary of Defence Mark Esper decried the ‘Chinese manipulation of the long-standing international rules-based order.’ Rules-based international system? Rules-based order? […]
Trump speech at Bagram – Brave noise exposes weak hand
Tariq Saeedi It was sad. Very sad. —– The American president was speaking to some of the bravest and most patriotic American troops in a hall. The hall was surrounded by gun mounted vehicles. The hall was located inside one of the most secure American bases in the world. The American base was located inside […]
The Ghost of Brzezinski haunts Trump Administration – Part 1
Tariq Saeedi The very vocal desire to maintain the global supremacy is perhaps the main feature of the ‘American exceptionalism.’ The American exceptionalism is composed of three related ideas: The history of the United States is inherently different from that of any other nation The USA has a unique mission to transform the world The […]
Trump finally delivers his state of the union address, and there are implications for Central Asia
Tariq Saeedi He is the master of sound bites and he delivered plenty of them. The state of the union address by President Trump, delayed by about three weeks from the traditional time frame, was full of phrases designed to touch his voters and adversaries alike. He has been confrontational all along and yet his […]
Трамп наконец выступил с обращением о состоянии страны и Центральной Азии есть на что обратить внимание
Тарик Саиди Он мастер громких фраз, и их в его выступлении было много. Обращение президента Трампа о состоянии страны, отложенное примерно на три недели от традиционной даты, было переполнено изречениями, нацеленных на сердца не только его избирателей, но и противников. Речь в целом носила конфронтационный тон, но в ней слышались и нотки примирения. На каждом […]
Trump-Putin Meeting and Central Asia
Tariq Saeedi When Trump met Putin in Helsinki on 16 July 2018, he had already insulted Germany, chided NATO, criticized the British PM, and disrespected Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth II in a short space of time. It is possible to hate Trump; in fact it is very easy to hate him, but the man […]
Встреча Трампа с Путиным и Центральная Азия
Тарик Саиди Во время пребывания в Хельсинки для переговоров с Путиным 16 июля, Трамп успел в короткий промежуток времениоскорбить Германию, упрекнуть НАТО, раскритиковать премьер-министра Великобритании и неуважительно отнестись к Ее Величеству Королеве Елизавете II. Можно ненавидеть Трампа; на самом деле очень легко ненавидеть его, но человеку нужно отдать должное за то, что он единственный автор […]
Trump withdraws from Iran Nuclear Deal – Probable side effects for Central Asia
Tariq Saeedi President Trump announced Tuesday (8 May 2018) that he was pulling out of the Iran Nuclear Deal. This would potentially bring several consequences to the doors of Central Asia, some positive, some negative. There are four elements to this mix: 1. Rationale of Trump for ditching the Iran deal; 2. Response of US […]
Turkmenistan-Uzbekistan Summit Meeting – The Beginning of Regional Concord – Part 1
Tariq Saeedi The visit of President Berdymuhamedov to Uzbekistan, 23-24 April 2018, marks the start of a new era of regional harmony in Central Asia. The media has picked the announcement of Uzbekistan to participate in TAPI as the lead news, and it certainly is, because TAPI is not just a gas pipeline; it is […]
Kazakhstan – Highlighting Central Asia on World Stage
Kazakhstan has always followed a balanced policy that highlights the Central Asian region in a positive light on the world stage. An ongoing tenure and a recently concluded event are the case in point. — President Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan met President Trump of USA on 16 January 2018, and Kazakhstan is the current chair of […]
Pak-US Relations at A Tipping Point
General Mirza Aslam Beg, Former COAS Pakistan — friendscolumn@hotmail.com “Trump is a man-baby, a failed businessman who lurches from tantrum to tweet storm and back again, who shows no impulse control, who won’t take responsibility for his actions, and who whines – a lot – when things don’t go his way.” —— Susan Campbell – American […]
2018 starts with new formats of pressure on Central Asia
Tariq Saeedi 3 January 2018 (nCa) – It is dismal yet knowable: 2018 has started with a mix of usual and fresh pressures on Central Asia. First tweets of 2018 President Trump, between his New Year festivities at Mar-a-Lago and a morning round of golf, took to Twitter: “Iran is failing at every level despite […]
Trump on The Wrong Side of History
General Mirza Aslam Beg Former COAS, Pakistan Army Email: friendscolumn@hotmail.com American Secretary of States’ hop-over visit’ to Pakistan, on his way to India, was a crude diplomatic gesture of brow-beating Pakistan. He handed over the demand note, as confirmed by a senior US diplomat – Alice Wells: “US wants to see practical steps from Pakistan, […]
ٹرمپ کی نئی اسٹریٹیجی کا انجام ناکامی ہوگا
جنرل مرزا اسلم بیگ سابق چیف آف آرمی سٹاف’ پاکستان Email: friendscolumn@hotmail.com امریکی وزیرخارجہ کا بھارت جاتے ہوئےپاکستان میں چند گھنٹوں کا ٹھہراو سفارتی بداخلاقی کے مترادف ہے۔جاتے ہوئے انہوں نے ایک تحریری نوٹ پاکستانی حکام کے حوالے کیا جس کی وضاحت امریکی سفارتکار ایلس ولز(Alice Wells) نےکی ہےکہ ‘‘امریکہ پاکستان سے مہینوں میں نہیں […]
Unraveling of TPP augers well for Central Asia
Tariq Saeedi Ashgabat, 25 January 2017 (nCa) — Trump has kept his promise — TPP is adrift. The TPP (Trans Pacific Partnership), more than eight years in the making, was undone by just one signature this week. It was designed to be a trade agreement between Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, […]
Trump for Central Asia – Part Three
Tariq Saeedi Ashgabat, 6 December 2016 (nCa) — What has been said already must be rephrased for emphasis – Trump ran his entire campaign while remaining outside the box and there is every indication that he will remain out of the box during his time in office. Even if he shifts into the box, he […]
Trump for Central Asia – Part Two
Tariq Saeedi Ashgabat, 30 November 2016 (nCa) — We are not sure whether his racism is real or perceived because according to the people who know him since long before the elections, Trump has not insulted anyone on the basis of their race alone. Simultaneously, the team he has picked so far suggests that blatant […]
A Lukewarm Endorsement of Trump
Tariq Saeedi I was planning to write a fairly enthusiastic endorsement for Donald Trump but decided to tone it down at the last moment — KKK and white supremacists have expressed their wholehearted support for Trump and he has still not distanced himself from their poisonous endorsement. Trump has variously been described as racist, soulless, […]