UNIPATH STAFF | Photos by SGT. 1ST CLASS TERRA GATTI/U.S. ARMY NATIONAL GUARD The nation of Donovia, determined to destabilize its neighbor Gorgas and reassert regional control, embarks on a campaign of irregular warfare: conducting assassinations, cutting gas pipelines, financing proxy forces, fomenting refugee crises. But in the midst of the Donovian-engineered instability — which culminates with armed incursions across a river — seven nations coordinate forces to reestablish peace on the troubled border. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan and Tajikistan each provide a battalion to form Task Force Patriot under the joint command of their senior officers. Uzbekistan sends an…
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MOAMMAR AL-ERYANI, MINISTER OF INFORMATION, CULTURE AND TOURISM, REPUBLIC OF YEMEN On July 5, 2023, U.S. Central Command reported it had thwarted an Iranian attempt to seize Bahamas- and Marshall Islands-flagged oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz. A day later, the U.S. 5th Fleet announced that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Navy (IRGC-N) had seized a merchant vessel in international waters near the Arabian Gulf and that the U.S. Navy had deployed ships in response. These incidents by the IRGC-N in international waters are not the first. Since 2021, Iran has targeted 20 commercial vessels in continuation of a pattern…
UNIPATH STAFF Under the slogan “Proper Education for New Generations is the Path to Comprehensive Peace and Development,” the third conference for interfaith dialogue was held in Baghdad, Iraq, in October 2022. Among the participants in the conference were representatives from the Pontifical Council for Interfaith Dialogue and the Iraqi religious endowments, in addition to spiritual leaders from various Iraqi religions. The conference agenda focused on education and how to prepare teachers to perform their role in maintaining peace, ensuring that curricula promote the culture of coexistence among members of different religions and ethnicities. Among topics discussed extensively in the…
UNIPATH STAFF Responding to Pakistani pleas to the international community for help, Kuwait, through the Kuwait Red Crescent Society, launched a three-day campaign of humanitarian aid, delivering in August 2022 relief to Pakistanis affected by devastating floods. The summer monsoon season between June and August 2022 generated floods that killed more than 1,100 people while displacing millions more. Coordinated by Kuwait’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 27 local charities provided supplies for thousands of people affected by the ravaging waters in Pakistan. Also, a Kuwaiti Air Force plane carrying 40 tons of medical supplies and food arrived in Sudan in September…
UNIPATH STAFF In September 2022, Bahraini women from numerous departments of the Ministry of Interior participated in a training program in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) patronized by Emirati Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak. Dubbed the Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak for Women, Peace, and Security (FBMWPS) program, it was developed to address the impact of war on women and underscore the importance of women’s equal participation in resolving conflict. It was organized by the Women’s Union in the United Arab Emirates FBMWPS aims to review the achievements and challenges related to the implementation of a United Nations Security Council resolution from…
UNIPATH STAFF One of a kind in the Middle East and North Africa for its large display of special forces equipment, the 13th iteration of the International Special Forces Exhibition and Conference (SOFEX) was held under the patronage of His Majesty King Abdullah II Ibn Al Hussein, at King Abdullah II Air Base, in Amman, Jordan, in October 2022. SOFEX 2022 drew hundreds of military delegations and more than 300 exhibitors from 38 countries, who showcased their products and systems in more than 13 international pavilions. On the first day, which is usually designated for the Middle East Special Operations…
UNIPATH STAFF During a visit to Kyrgyzstan in October 2022, U.S. Acting Assistant Secretary for Global Public Affairs Elizabeth Trudeau stressed that the U.S. sees a strong partner in Kyrgyzstan. She visited Kyrgyzstan to discuss the importance of the freedom of the press and media and listen to the Kyrgyz people and the government on how they see the future of Kyrgyz-American relations. During a meeting with Dairbek Orunbekov, head of the Information Policy Service of the Kyrgyz Presidential Administration, Ms. Trudeau expressed admiration for Kyrgyzstan’s free press as a bright light in the region. “You have provided open access…
UNIPATH STAFF To celebrate the anniversary of the agreement that normalizes relations between the two countries, His Highness Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, United Arab Emirates’ Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, visited Israel in September 2022. Sheikh Abdullah and the accompanying delegation visited Yad Vashem, Israel’s memorial to the victims of the Holocaust established in Jerusalem in 1953. Commending the role of Yad Vashem in documenting crimes committed against humanity, Sheikh Abdullah emphasized the importance of promoting tolerance and coexistence in the region and to establish peace and help realize peoples’ aspirations for dignified and prosperous lives.…
UNIPATH STAFF Uzbekistan is pursuing stronger economic and political relations with the United States in its push to play a greater role in the security of Central Asia. U.S. businesses want to increase investments in Uzbekistan. Both countries recently signed an agreement to simplify and speed up bilateral investment agreements to allow U.S. companies and financial institutions to participate in economic projects in Uzbekistan. In October 2022, a delegation of Uzbekneftegaz, Uzbekistan’s state-owned oil and gas company, met with representatives of major American companies such as Honeywell, Schlumberger and DeGolyer and MacNaughton during a visit to the U.S. U.S. investments…
UNIPATH STAFF Pakistan’s commitment to reduce money laundering and terrorist financing occurring within its borders earned it a higher ranking from an international organization that monitors such illegal money transfers. In October 2022, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) confirmed it had removed Pakistan from its “gray list” of countries under increased scrutiny owing to deficiencies in anti-money laundering (AML) and combating the financing of terrorism (CFT). FATF President T. Raja Kumar announced the decision at FATF headquarters in Paris. “Pakistan had addressed technical deficiencies to meet the commitments of its action plans,” Kumar said. A FATF evaluation team had…