By Asma Shakir Khwaja (9/10/2003 issue of the CACI Analyst)

BACKGROUND: During the past months, instances of the use of force and border clashes on the Pakistani-Afghan border have caused the deaths of numerous soldiers on both sides, and created serious misunderstandings among the two states. The border clashes took place shortly after the deployment of Pakistani troops in the tribal are of the Mohmand agency, to block the infiltration of suspected Taliban and Al-Qaeda activists from Afghanistan. Afghan tribesmen accused Pakistani troops of setting up checkpoints deep inside Afghan territory.

By Fariz Ismailzade (9/10/2003 issue of the CACI Analyst)

BACKGROUND: During the past ten years of Heydar Aliyev’s rule in Azerbaijan, the country’s opposition parties have been at bitter odds with one another in spite of domestic as well as international efforts for them to cooperate. This has seriously weakened their struggle against the ruling party. The major opposition parties, Musavat, Azerbaijan National Independence (ANIP), Popular Front and Democratic Parties have more often focused their struggle on each other than on the ruling regime.

By Hooman Peimani (9/10/2003 issue of the CACI Analyst)

BACKGROUND: As the successor of the Regional Cooperation for Development (RCD) in the 1960s, Iran, Turkey and Pakistan founded the Tehran-based ECO in 1985. However, it became active as a large economic bloc only when the five Central Asian countries, Afghanistan and Azerbaijan joined it in 1992. Within a few months, the ECO members reached an agreement on a 10% tariff reduction among themselves.