Comment & Briefs

A re-look of the intentions of the Chinese is important because according to long-term economic trends around 2030 Asia will be the world’s powerhouse just as it was prior to 1800. China is expected to surpass the US by 2016 to become the largest economy, and India’s GDP is expected to exceed that of the US by 2060.

Amid claims and counter claims, it can not be denied that unabated influx from Bangladesh into the North Eastern states has reached alarming proportion. It is essential that India convey strongly its concerns to Bangladesh.

There is quite clearly reluctance all around to sharing data or at least in negating the sighting of the airliner on the radar by countries in the region for security concerns as well as the lack of a centralised regional command and control centre for coordinating and monitoring the operations.

The diplomatic relations between European Union and Brazil were established during the 1960. Three aspects largely determine EU-Brazil relations: bilateral aspect, the EU-Mercosur aspect and increasingly after the financial crises the aspect of global economic governance.

“Credible minimum deterrence” is the cornerstone of India’s nuclear doctrine. It, used in conjunction with the concepts of “No First Use” (NFU) and “Non Use” against non nuclear weapon states, clearly indicates that India envisages its nuclear weapons as only a deterrent and not as a means to threaten others.

The Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea (CUES) is a small but positive sign towards better communication channels between navies to reduce tension in the seas. But for CUES to become a reality many issues need to be resolved including the time frame for implementation.

The success of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1540 should not make the international community overlook persisting problems. The objective of the 1540 is to internationalise WMD security by targeting the entire supply chain.

The naval exercise at Qingdao does not detract from the fact that the India-China maritime relationship is essentially an uneasy one. Each side is uncomfortable with the other’s presence in its own theatre of nautical influence, but both recognise the other’s dominance in their respective maritime ‘backyards’.

While the ‘compromise’, as put forth by Russia is a welcome development in so far it helps to diffuse the potential confrontation yet it does raise two pertinent questions: What made the key players arrive at such an agreement? And can this deal be implemented?

One of the provisions in the policy is that in the Information & Broadcasting and the Defence sectors, where the sectoral cap is less than 49 per cent, the company would need to be ‘owned and controlled’ by resident Indian citizens and Indian companies, which, in turn, are owned and controlled by resident Indian citizens. This is a virtual impossibility.