The Afghan Institute for Strategic Studies (AISS) hosted the 4th Herat Security Dialogue (HSD-IV) in Herat, Afghanistan.

The two-day conference, held on October 2, 2015, was attended by scores of high-ranking government officials, legislators, academicians, businessmen, and representatives of different international organizations, media outlets and civil society.

The HSD series aims to challenge the conventional approaches to security and encourage creative and ‘out of the box’ thinking and solutions. The HSD also encourages normative and cross-cultural dialogue concerning different approaches and perspectives on security.

Particularly, the HSD intends to address Afghanistan’s security and stability in the wider regional and global contexts.

This year’s dialogue was directed to discuss, “Islamic Civilization: Stagnation and Renaissance”. The following six topics including the ways forward were discussed during the two-day conference: 1) Moral and Political Dimensions: Ideas, Institutions and Practices; 2) Status and Challenges of Muslim Women; 3) Islam and the Rest: Confrontation, Misunderstanding and Dialogue; 4) Afghanistan’s Transformation Decade (2015-2024): Opportunities and Obstacles; 5) Cultural & Social Dimensions: Media, Education, Law; and 6) Herat School of Security: Concepts, Practices and Contemporary Relevance.