The Soufan Center hosted a one-hour panel virtual discussion focused on the current state and future prospects of Afghanistan, with a particular focus on national and international security, politics, and human rights. TSC Senior Research Fellow Colin P. Clarke moderated the conversation with experts Arian Sharifi (Princeton University), Amira Jadoon (Clemson University), and Ioannis Koskinas (Hoplite Group). TSC Executive Director Naureen Chowdhury Fink provided an introduction.
Since the Taliban assumed power following the withdrawal of the United States and its allied partners from Afghanistan, conditions have deteriorated dramatically in the country on many levels.
Skyrocketing humanitarian needs and food insecurity have crippled economic progress and the continued isolation of the de-facto Taliban government, several of whom remain sanctioned by the U.N., looks set to continue as long as the government denies women and girls basic rights, including education and access to employment. International discussions about the possible recognition of the Taliban government illustrate tensions between the need to work with the government to address crises with the drive to reaffirm international human rights obligations. With the U.S. footprint removed from Afghanistan, regional actors including Iran, India, China, and Russia are positioned to shape much of the country’s future, while the relationship between the Taliban and Islamic State Khorasan will determine its internal security and stability for the near-future.
You can watch a recording of the event here