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The international community will play an important but secondary role in Afghanistan’s future as Afghans work to create a more sustainable state through strengthening their political consensus, , building their economy, and increasing security.

Moeed Yusuf is director of the South Asia programs at the U.S. Institute of Peace and have been engaged in expanding the institute’s work on Pakistan/South Asia since 2010. In this interview he talks about his publication "Getting it Right in Afghanistan" and the difficult relationship between Afghanistan und Pakistan.

Being queer is still a stigma in Kenya and leads to social invisibility. With his Book "Invisible" the Kenyan author Kevin Mwachiro challenges the myths about alternative ways of love and living.

Most important now is that the international community responds speedily and clearly to what amounts to a Russian occupation of the Crimea and the additional threat of Russian troops being stationed in Ukraine. Europe is in no way powerless in the face of Russian actions, as Ralf Fücks and Walter Kaufmann illustrate in a ten-point plan.

On 29 January, Bohuslav Sobotka’s government was appointed by President Miloš Zeman. In contrast to Austria and Germany, the Czech president exercised much greater influence on the formation of the government, and process was clouded by an institutional controversy over the role of the head of state.

The next Hungarian parliament could include two green formations: Dialogue for Hungary (PM), which will surely have some members in parliament, and Politics Can Be Different (LMP). If LMP surpasses the election threshold an independent parliamentary group is guaranteed.

The 21st century has inherited the unfinished agenda of globalising democracy in a more vibrant form. In many instances there is a feeling of unease about the achievement of representative democracy because of the ongoing tendency of democratic nations to exclude or marginalise large sections of society. After 65 years of freedom and democracy India’s democratic structures continue to be restricted by their patriarchal foundations and women still fail to enjoy full and equal citizenship right across the country.

The recent local elections in India and the upcoming general electionhave opened up for speculation and debate on the role of smaller state-based regional parties. This article analyses how regionalism shapes India's political system.

For more than a decade, fast-growing India appeared to be well on the path to become another superpower. However, a considerable part of India’s population has remained poor; India’s growth lacks social inclusion. The debate is not new, but it is gaining increased attention in the current economic downturn, with elections pending for spring 2014.

Since India's economic liberalisation in 1991, the country has experienced impressive growth figures. Two decades after the reforms, social and ecologic costs of India's economy are surfacing. In an interview, environmentalist Ashish Kothari draws a picture of the Indian growth story and its deficits.