VOL 17 NO 2

by Zubair Torwali* *The author is a community activist, researcher, author, and educator based in Bahrain, Swat Pakistan. Zubair has published works in English, Urdu, and the Dardic Torwali language. He has authored and supervised a number of books in and about Torwali. His book in English, Muffled Voices, provides insight into Pakistan’s social, cultural, […]

by Shafqat Shaikh* *The author is a former Ambassador of Pakistan. The half-believed intermittent “Russian dreams” of reaching the warm- water ports on the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean and the oft-quoted “continuity theory” of the Russian Foreign Policy objectives deserve only a passing reference. Peter the great (1682-1725) often spoke of the “riches

S. Mushfiq Murshed* *The author is the editor of Criterion Quarterly. Some political theorists suggest that populism is an ideology whereas others consider it as a political strategy or a means to an end — the end being to acquire power. In the context of Pakistan, most political parties, when out of power, tend to

by Yusuf Zaman* *The author is a barrister and entrepreneur. Pakistani history and politics hold great interest for him. He can be contacted at: [email protected] The second president of the USA, John Adams, once said, “always stand on principle even if you stand alone”. In Pakistani politics, if ever this adage held true for a

by Ozer Khalid* *The author is a Senior Consultant, geo-strategist, a regular CQ contributor and a counter terrorism expert and can be reached at [email protected] and tweets @OzerKhalid Abstract This CQ study examines how the Taliban illicitly profit from narcotics, despite their declaratory rhetoric and researches how traffickers influence the strategic goals of the Taliban.