The first in a new series of monthly political and security risk briefings that have replaced our weekly updates. This month: civilian rule returns to Burkina Faso but armed forces retain considerable power; concern over territorial expansion after Russia signs treaty with Georgian breakaway territory of Abkhazia; conflict with Islamic State in Syria becomes increasingly complex; and more.
Tag: Afghanistan
Drones, special forces and mercenaries: Remote-control warfare briefing #05
Monthly briefing from the Open Briefing intelligence unit on developments in remote-control warfare. This month: increasing number of mercenaries in foreign conflicts from Balkans region; state and non-state hacker groups launch cyber attacks on Israel in response to Operation Protective Edge; US officials grapple with political and economic costs of NSA’s surveillance activities; and more.
Remote-control warfare briefing #03
Monthly briefing from the Open Briefing intelligence unit on developments in remote-control warfare. This month: leaked defence company presentation reveals United States’ Afghanistan exit strategy relies on private contractors; US justice department indicts five members of Chinese People’s Liberation Army for hacking into US corporate networks; United Kingdom’s signals intelligence agency forced to reveal its policy on mass surveillance; and more.
The weekly briefing, 2 June 2014
Political and security risk updates from the Open Briefing intelligence unit. Protesters in Central African Republic demand interim government’s resignation, incumbent president pushed into tight runoff vote in Colombia’s presidential election, Greenpeace activists board drilling rigs bound for the Arctic, and more.
The weekly briefing, 19 May 2014
Political and security risk updates from the Open Briefing intelligence unit. African leaders declare war on Boko Haram, end of winter in Afghanistan marks beginning of Taliban’s spring offensive, Western sanctions threaten Russian Arctic development, and more.
India: Jostling for geopolitical control in Afghanistan
In this article co-published with openDemocracy, Open Briefing contributing analyst Shazad Ali argues that the international community has somewhat ignored India's role in Afghanistan's future, which, in fact, will be pivotal as US forces drawdown in the country by the end of the year.
Key international developments for 2014
In December 2013 and January 2014, analysts from the Open Briefing intelligence unit reviewed the key international developments likely to occur over 2014. This briefing covers ten of these developments, including Russian military build-up in the Arctic, a stalled Myanmar transition, an uncertain future in Syria and civil unrest in Angola.
Iran’s outreach to Afghanistan and Tajikistan faces obstacles
Open Briefing: For all the focus on contemporary Iran, relatively little attention is paid to its trilateral ties with Afghanistan and Tajikistan, the geolinguistic remnants of an eclectic series of empires collectively denominated Persian.