On May 14, The Century Foundation’s International Working Group on Pakistan, chaired by former U.S. under secretary of state Thomas R. Pickering, released its report, Wake Up, Pakistan, in Washington, D.C. This initial roll-out phase was followed up by a series of public events in Islamabad, Pakistan.
At TCF’s D.C. office, Ambassador Pickering, Working Group chair, and Ambassador Riaz Khokhar, former Pakistani foreign secretary, led off the discussion of the report, moderated by TCF senior fellow and project principal investigator Michael Wahid Hanna. The first session was followed by a panel discussion featuring Ambassador Robert Finn (the first U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban); Barnett Rubin, former senior adviser to the U.S. special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan (SRAP); and Imtiaz Gul, executive director of the Center for Research and Security Studies; and was moderated by principal investigator Mosharraf Zaidi (video available here). The event was covered by Dawn, one of Pakistan’s leading English-language daily newspapers.
Tuesday, May 19 saw the official public release in Pakistan, with a panel discussion organized by the Center for Research and Security Studies, a Pakistani think tank and TCF’s partner organization (CRSS recap). This event also received significant press attention, including articles in Dawn and The News.
Finally, on Thursday, May 21, the Jinnah Institute—one of Pakistan’s premier think tanks—hosted a roundtable on Pakistan’s governance challenges (view photos from the event and read the Jinnah Institute’s recap). This discussion was also featured in Pakistan’s national newspapers, including the Express Tribune, The News, Pakistan Today, Pakistan Observer, and Daily Times.
In addition to coverage of the various events, individual Working Group members have also been offering their own analyses of themes reflected in the report. Mooed Yusuf’s op-ed in Dawn looked at how Pakistan’s leadership should try to help Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in its reconciliation talks with the Afghan Taliban. Tariq Khosa’s article in Dawn outlined the politicization of Pakistan’s law enforcement agencies. Ambassador Ann Wilkens coauthored an analysis piece for Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN) on Pakistan’s decision not to intervene militarily in Yemen. Neil Bhatiya wrote for Foreign Policy’s South Asia Channel on how the lack of regional cooperation threatens joint action against climate change.
It is TCF’s hope that this report will continue to inspire debate about the issues facing Pakistan and the role of the international community in South Asia in the years ahead.
Wake Up, Pakistan: A Recap
On May 14, The Century Foundation’s International Working Group on Pakistan, chaired by former U.S. under secretary of state Thomas R. Pickering, released its report, Wake Up, Pakistan, in Washington, D.C. This initial roll-out phase was followed up by a series of public events in Islamabad, Pakistan.
At TCF’s D.C. office, Ambassador Pickering, Working Group chair, and Ambassador Riaz Khokhar, former Pakistani foreign secretary, led off the discussion of the report, moderated by TCF senior fellow and project principal investigator Michael Wahid Hanna. The first session was followed by a panel discussion featuring Ambassador Robert Finn (the first U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban); Barnett Rubin, former senior adviser to the U.S. special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan (SRAP); and Imtiaz Gul, executive director of the Center for Research and Security Studies; and was moderated by principal investigator Mosharraf Zaidi (video available here). The event was covered by Dawn, one of Pakistan’s leading English-language daily newspapers.
Tuesday, May 19 saw the official public release in Pakistan, with a panel discussion organized by the Center for Research and Security Studies, a Pakistani think tank and TCF’s partner organization (CRSS recap). This event also received significant press attention, including articles in Dawn and The News.
Finally, on Thursday, May 21, the Jinnah Institute—one of Pakistan’s premier think tanks—hosted a roundtable on Pakistan’s governance challenges (view photos from the event and read the Jinnah Institute’s recap). This discussion was also featured in Pakistan’s national newspapers, including the Express Tribune, The News, Pakistan Today, Pakistan Observer, and Daily Times.
In addition to coverage of the various events, individual Working Group members have also been offering their own analyses of themes reflected in the report. Mooed Yusuf’s op-ed in Dawn looked at how Pakistan’s leadership should try to help Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in its reconciliation talks with the Afghan Taliban. Tariq Khosa’s article in Dawn outlined the politicization of Pakistan’s law enforcement agencies. Ambassador Ann Wilkens coauthored an analysis piece for Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN) on Pakistan’s decision not to intervene militarily in Yemen. Neil Bhatiya wrote for Foreign Policy’s South Asia Channel on how the lack of regional cooperation threatens joint action against climate change.
It is TCF’s hope that this report will continue to inspire debate about the issues facing Pakistan and the role of the international community in South Asia in the years ahead.