“Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban are teetering on the brink of a major crisis,” Afandyar Mir, a senior expert at the United States Institute of Peace (USIP), a Washington-based US government think tank, noted in a recent commentary. “After taking over the country, the Taliban gave the TTP de-facto political asylum. The TTP has used its improved political status in Afghanistan to step-up cross-border attacks and is now regularly sending fighters into Pakistan,” Mir said

The new government, which came to power only last month, has squarely blamed former prime minister, Imran Khan, for the mismanagement of the economy. Ismail said Khan had left the fastest growing inflation in the history of Pakistan, and took record loans during his tenure, reported The Express Tribune.

"Pakistan fell 12 points on [the] Press Freedom Index during [the] last year of Imran Khan's government and 18 points during his tenure. It not only earned him [the] shameful title of 'press freedom predator' but also placed our democracy in [a] bad light," PM Sharif said in a tweet.  

Trade disruption along the border with China during the pandemic, alleged border incursions in a northwestern district, and Kathmandu's aversion to costly Chinese loans for megaprojects among other factors have influenced Kathamandu’s desire to reduce its dependence on Bejing and mend ties with India and the US.

Tragically, the trend of early and forced marriages is growing across Afghanistan, aided by the ongoing ban on girls' education and escalating humanitarian crisis. There are several reports indicating the selling of children, particularly girls, by desperate parents.

The Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF) said the Indian authorities should respect the right to freedom of expression and release any journalists detained on trumped-up or politically motivated charges for their critical reporting and stop targeting them and muzzling independent media. "The authorities' targeting of journalists coupled with a broader crackdown on dissent has emboldened Hindu nationalists to threaten, harass and abuse journalists critical of the Indian government, both online and offline, with impunity," it said.

Despite growing protests and cracks within the ruling coalition, the government has been resisting the demand for the resignation of the president and the prime minister. However, they have agreed, in principle, to form a unity government

Germany on Monday committed to provide additional support worth euro 10 billion to India by 2030 to support green growth initiatives. India and Germany also agreed to work together on joint projects in third countries in an apparent signal to counter China’s debt-driven infra financing model, Business Standard said

Revenues from tourism contribute almost 70 percent of the country’s total GDP. In a recently released growth prospect, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) projected the Maldives to grow by 11 percent, mainly because of the rebound in the tourism industry

Rina Amiri, US special envoy for Afghanistan’s women, girls, and human rights, said the Muslim-majority countries needed to champion the cause of Afghan women and girls. “Taliban policies denying girls and women education and jobs aren’t seen in any other Muslim-majority country,” she said.

Jaishankar in a letter addressed to Stalin said that the mission in Colombo was consulted over Tamil Nadu's request. it said that the "MEA offers that Tamil Nadu Government's assistance can supplement what is being provided by the Government of India. The Government of Sri Lanka's preference is for inclusive distribution."

The 72-year-old Nawaz Sharif, elder brother of Pakistan’s current Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, is currently residing in Landon. In 2017, senior Sharif was removed from the position of the prime minister by the country’s Supreme Court after his name surfaced in the Panama Papers, leaked documents that exposed the alleged illegal assets in offshore havens of the rich and influential across the world.

The World Bank has estimated Nepal’s hydropower potential around 20,000 MW. So aligning its energy policy closely with the BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal) sub-regional vision will provide it with the much-needed potential for the export of this surplus energy to larger power consumers like India and Bangladesh

Usually, the visits of the prime minister are covered by a specialized crew equipped with high-end gadgets and computers. However, during the Lahore visit, the local team was asked to cover it. The headquarters failed to provide them with the necessary equipment in time.

Nepal, among the newest countries adopting parliamentary democracy, has laws requiring political parties to ensure a certain share of women among their candidates for local elections. However, most political parties have exploited a loophole in the country’s Local Level Election Act 2017 to undermine their representation