Even as Kazakhstan is making slow but steady progress towards further democratisation and openness of its political system, jostling by elites to secure their positions ahead of the ultimate exit of first President Nursultan Nazarbayev from the political scene, is set to grow.
Even as the Al-Ula summit has set a positive tone for the restoration of unity in the GCC, a high level of commitment is required by all parties to bridge the trust deficit.
While Imran Khan’s efforts to build legitimacy around his ‘personality’ as a religious person and a crusader against corruption do not seem to have convinced many people, his government’s inability to bring the much-promised tabdeeli (‘change’) to Pakistan is beginning to hurt him politically.
It remains to be seen to what extent Turkish President Recep Tayyeb Erdogan’s recent efforts to mend broken regional ties and address concerns over domestic policies will succeed.
India and Bangladesh fought together “in the defence of human liberty”, in the words of Sheikh Mujib ur Rahman, to liberate Bangladesh, fifty momentous years ago.
Disagreements on cabinet positions continue to hamper the formation of a new Lebanese government, even as the country is going through socio-economic turmoil, compounded by the pandemic and the Beirut port blast.
Executing extra-territorial targeted killings to eliminate inimical people bent on wrecking death and destruction on Indian nationals and interests is an option India may explore more vigorously, within the confines of international law.
In the aftermath of Samuel Paty’s beheading, France is taking measures that seek to reverse the processes through which individuals become ‘terrorists’. If successful, other countries could emulate such policy interventions in their own counter-radicalisation efforts.
It is critical to reduce the risks associated with cyber-enabled elections by ensuring end-to-end verifiability, protection of voter database, managing risks to the election infrastructure and curbing the menace of disinformation.
