Afghanistan Analysts Network – English

Thomas Ruttig

Undocumented Afghans in Iran: Collateral damage of US sanctions

Thomas Ruttig •

al-Araby , 7 December 2018 An interesting piece about how Afghans from different regions react to the sanctions-induced economic crisis in Iran, about their wages and how Iranian entrepreneurs save money employing undocumented Afghans.

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Can Afghanistan successfully regulate its private militias?

Thomas Ruttig •

TRT World, 5 December 2018 AAN’s Obaid Ali is quoted here extensively about a planned law to legalise (or bring under the law) illegale armed groups, although this is still an unlaid egg: “The National Security Council has not made a decision whether to legalise militias or not. It’s actually not finalised. There is an […]

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“There is no short way out”: A U.S. Ambassador Reflects on Afghanistan

AAN •

The National Interest, 5 December 2018 An interesting perspective on the current situation from the US, including the attempt to get peace talks with the Taleban going, by Ronald Neumann, who was US Ambassador to Afghanistan from 2005 to 2007 and returns regularly to the country but is not a government official anymore but knows enough […]

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Defying history, Moscow moves to defend Soviet war in Afghanistan

AAN •

Washington Post, 4 December 2018 The op-ed says: Last month, Russian lawmakers took another big step in the same direction by approving a draft resolution that seeks to justify the Soviet Union’s war in Afghanistan from 1979 to 1989. The formal vote on the measure — proposed jointly by lawmakers from the [pro-Putin party] United […]

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Getting to the Steering Wheel: President Ghani’s new set of peace proposals

Thomas Ruttig •

President Ashraf Ghani updated peace plan, presented at the Geneva Conference on Afghanistan on 28 November, the 13th international Afghanistan conference since 2001, built on the February 2018 Kabul Process proposals. Ghani foresees a five-phase approach to consultations and five years of implementation. At the same time, these proposals represent an attempt to reassert the Afghan government’s […]

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What are private security companies doing in Afghanistan?

AAN •

BBC, 2 December 2018 This article by the BBC Reality Check team, after the attack on the British security company G4S in Kabul, cites research by Fabrizio Foschini for AAN: Foreign security firms were also allowed to re-register as a risk management company. This allowed many companies to keep a footing in the security business, wrote […]

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How the Taliban gained the upper hand in a key province in Afghanistan

AAN •

Los Angeles Times and Stars & Stripes, 2 December 2018 This article on the Taleban’s military successes in Ghazni province quotes from AAN research: As early as 2015, shortly after the last U.S. forces left Ghazni province under a NATO drawdown, the Taliban controlled more territory there than the Afghan government did, according to the […]

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Returns and Displacement Policy Paper

AAN •

BAAG, 30 November 2018 This policy paper by the British & Irish Agencies Afghanistan Group (BAAG) looks at returns – enforced and voluntary – both from neighbouring countries Iran and Afghanistan as well as from Europe. Since 2015, 59% came from Iran, 41% from Pakistan, with the rest from EU countries including the UK (0.6%). […]

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Ghanis Friedensplan und Trumps America-First-Politik

Thomas Ruttig •

Neues Deutschland, 29 November 2018 Op-ed by AAN’s Thomas Ruttig about Afghan president Ghani’s peace proposals introduced at the international Afghanistan conference in Geneva in the German daily (in German, behind a paywall). Full text here.

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Afghanistankonferenz: Kleine Schritte zu Demokratie und Frieden

Thomas Ruttig •

Deutschlandfunk, 27 November 2018 AAN’s Thomas Ruttig is quoted in this article about the Geneva Afghanistan conference by the German public broadcaster (radio): Thomas Ruttig, der Co-Direktor der Nichtregierungsorganisation Afghanistan Analysts Network, sieht in dieser Situation sogar den Weg des Landes zur Demokratie gefährdet: „Wir haben ja gerade Parlamentswahlen hinter uns und wir haben immer […]

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Ydmyget USA forhandler fred med fanger fra Guantanamo

Thomas Ruttig •

Politiken, 26 November 2018 The Danish daily quotes AAN’s Thomas Ruttig in this article about US-Taleban talks: Den tyske ekspert Thomas Ruttig fra netværket Afghan [sic] Analysts Network er netop kommet hjem fra Afghanistan, hvor bekymringerne over USAs forhandlinger med Taleban er stigende. »Alle i Kabul frygter, at de kommer til at stå uden amerikanske […]

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Eldorado am Hindukusch

Thomas Ruttig •

Zur Sache BW, 23 November 2018 Extensive article by AAN’s Thomas Ruttig about the political economy   of the Afghan war: who profits from the war because it is ongoing and is not interested – despite everything what is said publicly –that it stops  (in German). Here a PDF version: 20181100JS-ZURSACHE-Afgh’s Kriegsgewinnler GEDRUCKT

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