The U.S. needs rethink its tendency to blindly follow the 'COIN' doctrine.

A decade ago, the U.S. immersed itself in the greater Middle East with its wars on Afghanistan and Iraq. Will the current economic scenario force it to turn away from this region?

Overall, the U.S.-Pakistan alliance hasn't been pleasant. Despite their growing mutual distrust for each other, which has become evident in the past few years, the alliance still continues. Is it worth all the troubles it comes with?

To leave behind a stable government in Afghanistan in 2014, the U.S. needs to work towards electoral reforms, negotiations with the Taliban, and a regional settlement involving Pakistan.

In 2001, fearing ethnic strife, the international community pushed for a strong central government in Kabul. But such fears fostered a system of regional and ethnic patronage. To correct matters, the U.S. should de-emphasize Afghanistan’s ethnic fault lines and push for more devolved and inclusive governance.

The execution of Osama Bin Laden has led to a decline in international military presence in Afghanistan, opening the door for developmental agencies and regional actors to play a more active role. Can India take advantage of this critical juncture and work towards achieving peace in Afghanistan?

There are no easy or cost-free ways to escape the current quagmire in Afghanistan. Although it has problems, a de facto partition of Afghanistan, in which Washington pursues nation building in the north and counter terrorism in the south, offers an acceptable fallback.

Richard Armitage, a former US deputy Secretary of State, believes that the Obama administration should take its partnership with the Afghan and Pakistani government before it proceeds with its proposed troop withdrwal from Afghanistan in July 2011

Afghanistan analyst Candace Rondeaux believes that pre-election violence, corrupt candidates and electoral fraud in Afghanistan's parliamentary elections to be held on September 18, 2010 are more a certainty than the outcome of the polls.