1. TLDR: What will it take for Pakistan to pressure the Taliban into a ceasefire? Pressure, concessions, clear priorities, & ultimately cooperation from Pakistan. A very tall order.

2. Many Afghanistan policy proposals require some action by Pakistan. But as usual there is a disconnect where Washington believes it can demand Pakistan "do more" without providing much in return and Islamabad thinks half-measures will suffice. It is a destructive dance.
3. Pakistan helped bring the Taliban to the negotiating table in Doha but stopped there & instead opted to tacitly support the Taliban’s bargaining position to enter into a ceasefire only after further concessions from Kabul & US troops leave.
4. The Taliban are overplaying their hand by delaying talks & escalating violence, while Pakistan is underplaying its hand by refusing to add pressure.
5. Why won’t Pakistan further pressure the Taliban?
- What’s in it for me? (sensitive to "do more")
- Less influence over current TB leadership.
- Scared of blowback from sectarian groups, TTP (so they say).
- Some sympathy for group.
6. Any policy proposal that prioritizes a political settlement to the war in Afghanistan requires Pakistan’s help. Neither “maximum pressure” nor “strategic love and affection” will work. In fact, nothing may work. But the Biden team can start with the FATF.
7. Escaping the FATF “grey list” would be a big political win for PM Imran Khan & the military, which makes it a source of leverage. Its effect is more political than economic.
8. Pakistan is on the FATF “grey list” due to support for anti-India terrorists & the Haqqani Network. The US can’t fundamentally alter Pakistan’s calculation on the anti-India groups using the list. But it may be able to improve the situation in Afghanistan. Time to prioritize.
9. The U.S. should clearly communicate its willingness to offer support for Pakistan at the FATF, in exchange for specific results-oriented actions to lower violence in Afghanistan. If progress is made, then options like releasing Coalition Support Fund $$ may also be considered
10. Next is India. The Biden admin must accept that Pakistan--not India--is key to ending the conflict in Afghanistan. US calls for India to play a bigger role in Afghanistan’s peace process, politics, & economy only fuel paranoia in Pakistan, however irrational.
11. If Washington wants Pakistan’s cooperation on Afghanistan, then it will have to take its India anxieties seriously, decouple Afghanistan from the broader Indo-Pacific strategy, & provide assurances in exchange for actions.
12. ACCEPT THEM LIMITS OF WASHINGTON’S OWN INFLUENCE
13. WAKE UP ISLAMABAD: Feigning inability to motivate the Taliban falls on deaf ears when much of the leadership & their families reside in Pakistan. Rising violence in Afghanistan ends one of two ways & neither is good for Pakistan↓
14. Pakistan's leadership must face reality: If things implode in Afghanistan & the above scenarios unfold, then Islamabad could face a coordinated campaign in DC to label it a state sponsor of terrorism. This would be a mistake, but one w/ dire consequences for Pakistan.
15. But the Biden admin must walk a tightrope. It should not allow this effort to consume other regional interests such as long-term CT cooperation, nuclear security, or trade & climate change. It must also acknowledge Pakistan’s real sacrifices in the GWOT.
16. Every time Pakistan faces a decision on Afghanistan, the Biden admin should offer Pakistan’s leadership a clear choice between positive & negative outcomes. But ultimately, the US should not tie a withdrawal to benchmarks that rely on cooperation that may never materialize.
17. Why does the article leave out the "K word"? Simple. Attempts to link the dispute in Kashmir to outcomes in Afghanistan failed in the past. Richard Holbrooke reportedly was threatened with an Indian visa denial over attempts to connect Pakistan-India disputes to Afghanistan.

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I'll bite, Mr. Gray. We can even play by your rather finicky rules.

Let's begin with some of the things you have said about Xinjiang, notably absent from your more recent media appearances, but still present in your blog about your 2014 biking trip.


The following is taken from an ongoing list I keep of people who have been to Xinjiang and written/spoken about their experiences. It is separate from the testimony of detainees and their relatives I also keep. Jerry is on this

Jerry, your article for CGTN, as well as your various Medium pieces, belabor themselves to emphasize the smoothness of your time in Xinjiang. Why did you leave out so many details from your log of your 2014 trip? They seem relevant.

For example, would CGTN not let you speak about Shanshan, the town that evidently disturbed you so much?


Why, pray tell, after noting how kind and hospitable Xinjiang police were to you in 2019 for CGTN—and how you were never told where you could or could not go—would you omit these details?
🧵 ⚡️ #Navalny, in handcuffs, expects his second verdict in one day NOW, about to be ready any minute now. He’s joking about cucumbers he pickles in his cell. I will translate his SECOND last address in one day but here is the previous trial coverage


Extracts from #Navalny last address #2 today: “Putin’s party is akin a swine devouring oil and gas dollars from a trough, & when poked & reminded that $ are for everyone, growls, “What about the WWII? What about veterans?!” The verdict is due any minute now. #FreeNavalny 👇🏼☝🏼

The judge is back and reads the verdict now.

“The politician criticized the participants in the [RT] video in support of the amendments to the Constitution, calling the presenters "corrupt lackeys", "traitors" and "people without conscience."

The judge says Navalny pleaded not guilty and called the persecution politicized.

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THE MEANING, SIGNIFICANCE AND HISTORY OF SWASTIK

The Swastik is a geometrical figure and an ancient religious icon. Swastik has been Sanatan Dharma’s symbol of auspiciousness – mangalya since time immemorial.


The name swastika comes from Sanskrit (Devanagari: स्वस्तिक, pronounced: swastik) &denotes “conducive to wellbeing or auspicious”.
The word Swastik has a definite etymological origin in Sanskrit. It is derived from the roots su – meaning “well or auspicious” & as meaning “being”.


"सु अस्ति येन तत स्वस्तिकं"
Swastik is de symbol through which everything auspicios occurs

Scholars believe word’s origin in Vedas,known as Swasti mantra;

"🕉स्वस्ति ना इन्द्रो वृधश्रवाहा
स्वस्ति ना पूषा विश्ववेदाहा
स्वस्तिनास्तरक्ष्यो अरिश्तनेमिही
स्वस्तिनो बृहस्पतिर्दधातु"


It translates to," O famed Indra, redeem us. O Pusha, the beholder of all knowledge, redeem us. Redeem us O Garudji, of limitless speed and O Bruhaspati, redeem us".

SWASTIK’s COSMIC ORIGIN

The Swastika represents the living creation in the whole Cosmos.


Hindu astronomers divide the ecliptic circle of cosmos in 27 divisions called
https://t.co/sLeuV1R2eQ this manner a cross forms in 4 directions in the celestial sky. At centre of this cross is Dhruva(Polestar). In a line from Dhruva, the stars known as Saptarishi can be observed.