Published December 14, 2011 | By Alessandra Wasserstrom and Raphaël Jaeger

Due to Nepal’s relatively recent transition to a democratic government, it continues to experience teething troubles in its minority coalition government. In 2010, it faced many problems resulting from both physical and rhetorical clashes with the Maoist minority but has since resolved those issues. Significant progress has been made recently, notably with the election of a new prime minister and the completion of an agreement concerning former Maoist rebels. Nepal continues to experience severe problems with food security, as large portions of its rural population are stricken with both high unemployment rates and lack of food availability leading to increased migration to urban areas. Recently, the government has begun to address this problem, although improvements are slow. Moreover, Nepal has a very high rate of corruption among government officials, further delegitimizing the government and not allowing for essential aid and funds to reach those most in need.

Published October 14, 2011 | By Ryan Costello and Ed Nagle

Revelations from the 2004 exposure of the A. Q. Khan network have highlighted the importance of this region in global nonproliferation efforts. While terrorism is by no means constrained to the Afghanistan/Pakistan border, the confluence of intent, knowledge and materials is found in this region. It remains uncertain if all nodes of the Khan network have been identified. Other leading Pakistani scient ist s have demonstrated a willingness to share nuclear knowledge if not material capabilities. The diversity of suppliers in quantity, location and specialty has made confirmation tentative at best. Pakistan’s nuclear weapons program is extensive and ongoing. The infrastructure that enabled Khan’s prolonged success remains in place. In addition, the intentions of individual members of Pakistan’s intelligence and military leadership have been called into question as a result of revelations regarding Bin Laden’s death.