Experts
Irfan Yar
Founder
Irfan Yar founded the Afghanistan Security Institute. Previously, he held roles at the Global Counterterrorism Institute (volunteer), the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, the Observer Research Foundation, and Carnegie India.
Irfan holds two master’s degrees: an MA in Area Studies and an MA in International Affairs from the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs (NPSIA) in Ottawa. He also completed a BA Honors in Political Science. His research interests focus on Afghanistan, terrorism, and radicalism. His most recent peer-reviewed publication, “How the Taliban Mobilized Popular Support to Survive the US War in Afghanistan,“ highlights his deep expertise in the region.
In addition to peer-reviewed work, Irfan has authored numerous papers and opinion pieces for national and international outlets, including The Hill Times, The National Post, The Toronto Sun, The Mint, The Epoch Times, and The Diplomat Magazine.
Irfan is fluent in Pashto, English, Dari/Persian, Urdu/Hindi, with basic proficiency in German and Arabic.
Disclaimer: Irfan’s views expressed through the Afghanistan Security Institute (ASI) do not reflect the policies or positions of any other organization he may be associated with.
Email: Irfanyar@afgsecurity.org Irfan.yar1@gmail.com
Anthony A. Spadaro
Member of the Advisory Board
Sergeant Major (Retired), USMC
Former Command Senior Enlisted Leader, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command: Anthony Spadaro is a retired United States Marine Corps senior noncommissioned officer (Sergeant Major) who has a distinguished 35-year military career. During his service, Anthony served at the most senior levels for the Marine Corps and Department of Defense. He culminated his service to our Nation as the Command Senior Enlisted Leader for the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, the largest geographic combatant command with 380,000 uniformed (Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines), and civilian members along with 36 partner nations. In this role, he provided the commander with the enlisted perspective on theater security cooperation, encouraging peaceful development, responding to contingencies, and deterring aggression throughout the Indo-Asia-Pacific region.
Though recently retired from the Marine Corps, Anthony’s next chapter has him serving as a consultant and strategist with the following companies/organizations: Vice President, Director of Development & Special Projects, The Robert Irvine Foundation and BeaverFit USA. Additionally, he serves on the advisory boards for: the Asia-Pacific Security Innovation Forum (APSI), Emory Healthcare Veterans Program, FourBlock.org, FitOps, the Youth Impact Program, Our Community Salutes, USA, Roberts-Ryan Investments, Inc and the Afghanistan Security Institute. Furthermore, he is the Vice President for Training, 5th Principle LLC; a leadership coach with the Resilience Building Leader Program and an Adjunct Faculty member with the Marine Corps University. Anthony owns his own consulting firm, Gravitas Leadership Solutions, LLC. He continues to focus his attention on empowering and assisting military members, veterans, and their families.
Dr. Nazir A. Yusufi
Research Fellow
Dr. Nazir Ahmad Yosufi is a Research Fellow at ASI. His area of research focuses on EU-Afghanistan relations. He completed his Ph.D. degree in International Relations from the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University. His research focused on European Development Assistance in Afghanistan with Special Reference to Germany, 2002-2017”. He also holds an MBA and BBA degrees. Dr. Yusufi has published several books, chapters, and research papers on issues related to Afghanistan. He also serves as the Representative of Afghan Youth to Asia, Youth High Council, Kabul, Afghanistan. He has worked at the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in New Delhi; He speaks Dari, Pashto, Hindi, English and Balochi languages. Some of his recent publications include; Role of the EU in Development Assistance in Afghanistan Since the Fall of Taliban, International Journal of South Asian Studies; Foreign Development Assistance in Afghanistan: A Critical Analysis, 2001-2018, Journal of Himalayan and Central Asian Studies, Cultural Diversity in Afghanistan, Journal of South Asian Fraternity (SAF);European Development Assistance in Afghanistan: A case study of Germany, (1919 – 2019), Under editing; Book chapter titled, “The Role of US and Russia in Post-War Afghanistan: Fighting or Supporting Taliban?”
Dr. Raymond Kwun-Sun Lau
Research Fellow
Dr. Raymond Kwun-Sun Lau was born and raised in Hong Kong and holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of Queensland, Australia. He is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science and Sociology at North South University in Bangladesh. Previously, Dr. Lau served as a Lecturer in History at Hong Kong Baptist University.
His teaching and research interests span a range of critical global issues, including international relations post-1945, the comparative study of genocide and mass atrocities, the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) doctrine, and humanitarian intervention. Dr. Lau also focuses on Indo-Pacific geopolitics, the Global South (specifically Africa and South Asia), Chinese foreign policy, and Hong Kong politics.
Dr. Lau is the author of Responding to Mass Atrocities in Africa: Protection First and Justice Later (Routledge, 2022), a key work that explores the dynamics of intervention and justice in conflict zones.
Email: dr.raymondlau@gmail.com