Comment & Briefs

China’s response to the killing of Osama bin Laden has been cautious and marked by a degree of nuance given potential changes in US ties with Pakistan and India.

Although the causes of insurgency in the region have been primarily political, the ambiguity related to its economic potential has added fuel to the turmoil.

The article fleshes out Pakistani first use options for an informed discussion on the implied nuclear threat that Pakistan sometimes resorts to.

The sense of a liberated zone is apparent as one enters Chitrakonda, with three storey tombs painted in red with the comrades’ name and a hammer and sickle dotting the arid landscape.

The underlying message of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit is to convey to Pakistan, the US and the others that India has strategic interests in Afghanistan.

Contrary to popular perception the US has adopted a cautious approach with President Obama outlining a limited role for the United States in the UN-authorised military intervention in Libya.

Wikileaks cables reveal a secret pact in which the Hatoyama administration agreed to honour the 2006 agreement on the relocation of Futenma if the US were to reject the proposed alternative.

Common sense suggests that India as the weaker partner has much more to gain from the relationship with the U.S., but common sense has always been somewhat scarce in Indian strategic thought.

The elimination of OBL might not accelerate US withdrawal from Afghanistan, but in all probability this marks the beginning of the end of active US military presence in Afghanistan.

While keeping the doors open for negotiations, the US and South Korea are unlikely to relax any of the terms and conditions they have set for Pyongyang.