Former U.S. envoy Zalmay Khalilzad has highlighted the strategic importance of Pakistan’s relationship with Afghanistan, noting that visiting Central Asian leaders are likely encouraging Islamabad to strengthen its policies toward Kabul.

In a post on X, Khalilzad emphasized that Central Asian nations have a strategic interest in access to Pakistan and beyond, including the sea, to support their trade and connectivity projects. He pointed out that these countries are particularly focused on developing railways, pipelines, telecommunications, and electricity networks linking Central Asia and Pakistan—a move he said would also serve Pakistan’s interests.

“Of course, Afghanistan’s role is vital to the goal of regional connectivity and development,” Khalilzad said. “Stability in Afghanistan and good Pakistan/Afghanistan relations are the absolute prerequisite.”

He suggested that the Central Asian leaders visiting Islamabad are urging improvements in Pakistan’s Afghanistan policies and expressed hope that Pakistani authorities would listen to these recommendations.

Pakistani officials have repeatedly claimed that Afghanistan-based militants have carried out recent attacks in Pakistan. Kabul denied the charge, saying it could not be held responsible for security inside Pakistan.

Trade between the two countries remains suspended following a deadly clash near the Durand Line in October.

Latvia has launched a criminal investigation into potential human trafficking after the release of documents related to late U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein that included references to Latvian model agencies and models, police in the Baltic nation said on Thursday.

The investigation, which also involves Latvia’s prosecutors and its Organised Crime Bureau, will centre on “the possible recruitment of Latvian nationals for sexual exploitation in the United States”, police said in a statement, Reuters reported.

It has asked potential victims to come forward.

Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics called for the investigation after the public broadcaster reported the Epstein documents included passport data and travel details for several Latvian women.

Eriks Neisans, head of the Natalie modelling agency mentioned in the documents, denied any knowledge of wrongdoing to the public broadcaster.

The U.S. Justice Department’s recent release of millions of internal documents related to Epstein has revealed the late financier and sex offender’s ties to many prominent people in politics, finance, academia and business – both before and after he pleaded guilty in 2008 to prostitution charges.

Latvia’s neighbour Lithuania has launched its own investigation into human trafficking earlier this week.

Afghan citizens were among the top three nationalities applying for asylum in Russia in 2025, according to new statistics reviewed by TASS. The figures show that 281 Afghan nationals submitted asylum requests during the year, placing Afghanistan in the third-highest position.

The data shows that Syrians ranked second with 3,196 applications. The highest number of requests came from Ukrainian citizens, who filed 3,332 applications in 2025—slightly lower than in previous years but still the largest group overall.

Uzbekistan (176 applicants) and Germany (129) also appeared among the top five nationalities seeking asylum in Russia last year. Overall, 8,220 foreigners applied for temporary asylum in 2025, an increase of 1,341 compared to 2024.

Temporary asylum in Russia grants legal residence, permission to work without a permit, access to medical care under compulsory insurance, travel documents, education opportunities, and financial assistance. It is also considered the first step toward securing a temporary residence permit and eventually Russian citizenship.