Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry

Sep 21, 2024 | dawn.com | Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry

ON Oct 15-16, Pakistan will host the heads of government meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. It would be an occasion to review the SCO’s progress towards fulfilling the promise with which it started out 23 years ago. The SCO evolved from the Shanghai Five, which was established in 1996 by China, Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. It assumed its name when Uzbekistan joined in 2001. By 2017, India and Pakistan also joined it. Iran came along in 2023, and Belarus a year later.

Sep 16, 2024 | stratheia.com | Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry

With the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991, the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union ended, and ushered in a new era that came to be known as globalization. The world began to deepen its interdependence and appeared as one village. Thomas Friedman’s book ‘The World is Flat’ aptly described how every country was now connected with the other in multiple ways that were mutually beneficial.

Sep 14, 2024 | dawn.com | Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry

FORTY days after Sheikh Hasina Wajed fled Dhaka, Bangladesh is slowly recovering from the after-effects of her government’s violent crackdown on the students-led protests, that reportedly cost over 1,000 lives. The intellectual community worldwide is curious to understand why Hasina, who cultivated her image as the ‘iron lady’, lost her grip on power so rapidly, as well as the nature of the change in Bangladesh.

Sep 7, 2024 | dawn.com | Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry

AT a book launch in New Delhi on August 30, the Indian external affairs minister remarked that “the era of uninterrupted dialogue with Pakistan is over”. Dialogue is the essence of inter-state conduct, particularly between neighbours. To shun dialogue is to shut the doors on diplomacy and open doors for conflict. Since 2016, India has cut off all links with Pakistan and conditioned dialogue with it to an end to the alleged cross-border terrorism from Pakistan.

Aug 31, 2024 | dawn.com | Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry |Tariq Parvez

AT a time when tourism has emerged as a major sector of the global economy, many nations have invested heavily in the industry to contribute to their GDP and also create employment. For Pakistan, too, tourism has the potential to not only bring socioeconomic dividends, but also improve the country’s image. In fact, there are very few countries in the world that can match Pakistan’s combined potential for mountain, religious, heritage, and coastal tourism.