Title | Date | Author | Time | Event | Body | Research Area | Topics | File attachments | Image |
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India’s Engagement with Central Asia: Exploring Future Directions - Concept Note | July 10, 2012 | 1500-1730 hrs | Round Table |
Venue: Room 005, IDSA IDSA is organizing a roundtable on “India’s Engagement with Central Asia: Exploring Future Directions” to celebrate Twenty Years of Friendship and Cooperation between India and Central Asian Republics. The roundtable aims to initiate a free flowing discussion amongst the scholars, experts, officials and diplomats in order to explore the possibilities of future engagement with the region. Dr. Arvind Gupta, Director General, IDSA will chair the proceedings. Concept NoteOver the past few years, New Delhi has stepped up its engagement with the Central Asian Republics (CARs)—Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan—with the aim of building a long-term partnership, both bilaterally and collectively. India has also expressed its desire to play an expanded and more meaningful role in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), including its bid for full membership in the organization. India has also been a consistent supporter and active participant of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA). (CICA is the only Central Asian forum of which India is a member.) The high-level visits from both sides—Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev’s visit to Delhi and President Pratibha Patil’s visit to Tajikistan in 2009; Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Kazakhstan in 2011; Uzbek President Islam Karimov’s visit to India in May 2011; and the two-day visit by SM Krishna to Tajikistan on 2-3 July 2012—reflect the growing political ties between India and the Central Asian region. New Delhi is now looking forward to Tajik President Emomali Rahmon’s visit to India in September 2012. The first India-Central Asia Dialogue, a Track-II initiative organized on 12-13 June 2012 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, was yet another step towards building a long-term partnership with the Eurasian region. The objective behind this regional conference is to start a regular annual dialogue forum among academics, scholars, government officials and business representatives from India and the CARs, with the aim of providing inputs to governments on both sides. It was during this regional conference that E. Ahmad, Minister of State for External Affairs, pronounced India’s new “Connect Central Asia” Policy. He said: “India is now looking intently at the region through the framework of its ‘Connect Central Asia’ policy, which is based on pro-active political, economic and people-to-people engagement with Central Asian Countries, both individually and collectively.” The “Connect Central Asia” policy is a broad-based approach, which encompasses political, economic and cultural connections between India and the CARs. Krishna’s visit to Tajikistan is a continuation of India’s new policy approach towards the CARs and its readiness to play a pro-active, meaningful and sustained role in the Eurasian region. He articulated this very clearly in his address to the Heads of Missions conference in Dushanbe where he stated that as the Eurasian region undergoes rapid transition, the time has come for India to evolve a calibrated and co-ordinated response in its engagement with each of the countries in the region to further secure India’s core national interests. As a part of its “Connect Central Asia” policy, India plans to set up an Indian-Central Asia University in Kyrgyzstan and is looking towards deploying its soft power to consolidate goodwill in all Central Asian countries through IT, culture, networking with young politicians and academia. In addition, New Delhi is talking with Tajikistan to set up a military hospital and also plans to operate up to 14 direct flights to Dushanbe. To begin with, both India and Tajikistan will launch four flights each. The other important area of the “Connect Central Asia” policy is India’s economic ties with the region. While Krishna asked the 11 Indian heads of mission in the region to work on converting India’s “enormous goodwill” into “tangible and strategic advantages”, the current status of India’s trade with these countries, which is pegged at a mere $500 million, indicates the most unsatisfactory part of an otherwise excellent relationship with the region. Connectivity through land and sea routes to Central Asia is still a big challenge. Related to the issue of economic cooperation is the aspect of the relevance of the energy-rich Eurasian region for energy-deficit India. India views Central Asia as a long-term partner in the energy and natural resources trade. To improve connectivity to the region, India is working on the International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC) among other options. India and the CARs share common concerns on terrorism, extremism, and drug–trafficking. The current developments in Afghanistan and the proposed western military pullout by 2014 raise serious questions on the stability of the region as a whole. India plans to further strengthen its strategic and security cooperation with all the CARs with a focus on military training, joint research, counter-terrorism coordination and close consultation on Afghanistan within the framework of its “Connect Central Asia” policy. As India moves ahead with its “Connect Central Asia” policy to cement its relations with the Eurasian region, it is extremely significant to get the Central Asian perspective on India’s role in the region. Equally important would be to debate how India-Central Asia relations can be further strengthened. This Roundtable proposes to discuss current status of the India-Central Asia relationship, its newly pronounced “Connect Central Asia” policy, analyse problem areas, and pave the way for mutually-beneficial future engagement. Listed below are themes on which the discussions may focus: Regional Issues
Bilateral Issues
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Eurasia & West Asia | ||||
India’s Neighbourhood Challenges in the Next Two Decades | July 13, 2012 | 1000 hrs | Book Release |
Venue: IDSA Auditorium Programme Outline09:30-09:55 hours: Registration/ Tea 10:00-10:10 Welcome Remarks, Director General, IDSA 10:10-10:40 Book Release and address by Foreign Secretary, Shri Ranjan Mathai 10:40-10:45 Vote of Thanks Brig Rumel Dahiya (Retd), DDG, IDSA 11:00- 13:00 Panel Discussion: India’s Neighbourhood Challenges Mr Asoke Mukerji, Spl. Secretary MEA - Chair 13:00 Lunch at IDSA |
South Asia | ||||
India-Japan-South Korea Trilateral | June 29, 2012 | Round Table |
The First Track II Dialogue among India, Japan and South Korea was held in IDSA on 29 June 2012. This trilateral initiative was conceptualised in a meeting involving the Ambassador of Japan to India, Mr Akitaka Saiki, Ambassador of South Korea Mr. Kim Joong-Keun and Joint Secretary, East Asia in Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Mr. Gautam Bambawale. It was also mentioned in the joint statement between India and South Korea during the visit of Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh to Seoul in March last year. The core idea behind the trilateral initiative was that the three countries enjoy a strategic partnership based on shared values of democracy, strong economic linkage and common strategic interests. The track-II dialogue was supported by the Ministry of External Affairs and was organized under the aegis of Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses, IDSA. Five scholars each from Tokyo Foundation of Japan and Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security (IFANS) of South Korea participated in this dialogue and presented their research. Setting the tone of the deliberation, Mr. Sanjay Singh, Secretary East, MEA said, “We seek a peaceful and secure Asia free from the threats of terrorism, proliferation, piracy and conflicts between states. There is a common commitment to maintaining freedom of the seas, combating terrorism and promoting inclusive economic growth. India, Japan and ROK depend heavily on the Sea Lanes of Communications (SLOCs) for their energy security.” He also added that he expected the trilateral to “generate ideas that would influence the wider relationship existing amongst the partners at governmental level and at the people-to-people level and develop a shared understanding on how we view our region and the emerging Asian architecture. This impact will be good measure of the success of this process.” Welcoming the delegates, Dr. Arvind Gupta, DG, IDSA, stated that the three countries should come together to stimulate new ideas and thoughts to bring about better coordination and cooperation for peace and development for the region as well as the world at large. He further said that at present, the three countries are facing challenges of rapidly changing geopolitical environment and the emergence of new security threats, both at regional as well as global levels. He added that a sustained dialogue among the three countries is extremely important and the Track II seminar will be instrumental in stimulating some ideas to carry forward such a dialogue. H.E. Mr. Akitaka Saiki, Japanese Ambassador to India said that the three countries, with second, third and fourth highest GDPs in Asia and their active membership of the G-20, have a great responsibility, individually and collectively, towards the region and the world at large. H.E. Mr. Kim Joong-Keun, South Korean Ambassador to India, lauded the initiative to hold dialogue among the states and hoped that the Track II dialogue would soon be transformed into Track I dialogue. SuggestionsSecurity IssuesParticipants suggested various issues for future deliberation on trilateral cooperation. Maritime security cooperation, especially piracy in Indian Ocean Region can be discussed. Japan, India and South Korea can play a constructive role in creating a consensus on the freedom of navigation in the context of South China Sea. It was opined that issues related to terrorism and cyber security can be also be discussed in future dialogue. The three countries could also share each other’s strategic view, for example scenario-making process aimed at understanding the future developments on their respective socio-economic-political spheres. Non-Traditional SecurityThe general view was that issues such as energy security, transnational crimes including drug trafficking, arms smuggling etc could be explored. Prospects at the signing of a Trilateral Search and Rescue Agreement among India, Japan and South Korea could also be discussed. MiscellaneousSocial security issues can be an important area of cooperation. Public health can also be an important area of cooperation. Cooperation in the field of Science and Technology including space could be an important issue of discussion. Global governance issues like reforms of the UN Security Council, IMF and WTO can also be discussed and debated. Future dialogue should come out with some suggestions regarding how to promote trade and investment among the three countries. Conduct of joint research projects among the three institutes representing the three countries. Report prepared by Dr. Shamshad Khan Inaugural address: Shri Sanjay, Secretary (East), Ministry of External Affairs |
East Asia | |||||
The Peacemakers: India and the Quest for One World | June 28, 2012 | 1530 hrs | Book Discussion Forum |
Speaker: Dr Manu Bhagavan Chair: Brig Rumel Dahiya About the AuthorManu Bhagavan is associate professor in the Department of History at Hunter College and the Graduate Center, the City University of New York. He is the author or (co-)editor of four other titles, including Heterotopias: Nationalism and the Possibility of History in South Asia andClaiming Power from Below: Dalits and the Subaltern Question in India. |
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Talk on "The Arab Spring: Present Scenario and Implications for India" | July 09, 2012 | 1500 hrs | Other |
Venue: Seminar Hall I, IDSA Speaker: Shri Talmiz Ahmad, India’s Former Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia |
Eurasia & West Asia | ||||
Challenges Expected for IAF till 2030 | July 27, 2012 | Vivek Kapur | 1030 to 1300 hrs | Fellows' Seminar | Military Affairs | ||||
Counter-Insurgency Best Practices and their Applicability in the Northeast | July 27, 2012 | Namrata Goswami | Fellows' Seminar |
Chairperson: General Satish Nambiar Discussants: Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain, Military Secretary, Integrated Headquarters (Army), Ministry of Defence Dr. Namrata Goswami’s paper defines insurgencies as violent struggle against the state for legitimacy and influence over relevant populations. In order to win against any insurgency, the first core insight for any counter-insurgency force is to gain the support of the population. Coupled with population support is the criticality of efficient intelligence though these are not the ultimate required measures. Dr. Goswami’s paper discusses counter-insurgency best practices and the means to operationalize these practices on the ground by identifying nine best practices. The paper selects the best practices based on a literature survey on counter-insurgency theory, doctrines and manuals of the Indian, British and US military and also on the field experiences of the author in Northeast India to have a more focused study. The author affirms that insurgency is unique after having conducted work on the ground in the conflict affected states in Northeast India. But, there are certain common features of counter-insurgency that are valid across time and space as indicated by the literatures on counter-insurgency which is used as the frame of reference by the author in the paper. Based on the works on counter-insurgency which have been utilized in this paper, the author has identified nine best practices spanning across time and space for detailed study in this paper: Primacy of Political Goals; Centre of Gravity; Population; Counter-Propaganda; Resolute Leadership; Intelligence; Unity of Effort; Appropriate Force Structures; Rule of Law; and Operational Clarity. The paper offers to test the applicability of these counter-insurgency best practices to the Northeast of India. For the purpose of the paper, counter-insurgency is defined as “those military, paramilitary, political, economic, psychological, and civic actions taken by a government to defeat an insurgency”.
The author reemphasises in the conclusion that the aim of the insurgents is not to kill but spread parallel government to establish their own legitimacy. Hence, the aim of the counter-insurgency forces should be to root out these parallel structures of government. Major Points of Discussion and Suggestions to the Author:
Report prepared by Srishti Pukhrem, Research Assistant, Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, New Delhi. |
Terrorism & Internal Security | ||||
Estimating Self-Reliance in India's Defence Production | July 20, 2012 | Laxman Kumar Behera | Fellows' Seminar |
Chairperson: Shri Vinod Misra This paper attempts to estimate the self-reliance index of India’s defence production. While estimating the index, it also focuses on three important issues; the approach towards self-reliance (as understood in the Indian context), data problems in estimating the index and the methodology used to arrive at the index. The paper suggests that a separate budgetary classification be made in the Defence Services Estimates to facilitate computation of self-reliance in a more objective manner. This necessitates suitable changes in the classification handbook for defence that mandates the concerned officials of the Indian Defence Accounts Department to book a particular expenditure. Mr. Behera argued that the concept “self-sufficiency” differs from “self-reliance”, though these have alternatively been used in the Indian context. Self-sufficiency means producing everything in-house that the armed forces need, whereas self-reliance refers to “equipping the armed forces with a whole range of equipments that may come from foreign and domestic sources”. However, he argues that ‘self-sufficiency’ is not an ideal path for a country like India since India’s industrial and Research and Development (R&D) base is not yet sufficiently developed. Mr Behera describes three phases of India’s defence industrialisation process from the perspective of the aim of self-reliance; from independence to mid-1960s, from mid-1960s to mid-1980s, and from late 1980s till present. In the first phase, self-sufficiency was an overall economic principle behind its industrial development as the leadership at that time felt that the state-led intervention was the best way to overcome the de-industrialisation of economy that was caused by two centuries of the British rule. However, despite some successes, this model had faced considerable weaknesses because of the low level of defence allocation and defence R&D, in addition to the lack of a civil industrial base which had a major impact during this phase. In the second phase, according to the author, the events of 1960s, particularly the 1962 border war with China and the 1965 Indo-Pak war, brought a major change in India’s defence policy, and the term self-reliance replaced self-sufficiency in defence production. Not only India’s defence budget as percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased in the subsequent years but also the approach towards arms procurement policy and indigenous defence production. Moreover, unlike in the first stage of industrialisation, in the second stage of India’s defence industrialisation, more attention was paid to license-production rather then indigenous production, based on its own design and developmental efforts. However, this led to dependency on the license-based defence production, particularly on the Soviet Union. India’s aeronautics industry is such a case whose dependency continues till now. And, in the third phase, with increasingly aware of the pitfalls of the overdependence on Soviet Union, India began to change its approach to defence industrialisation, from license-based production to production based on indigenous design. In this regard, India and Russia signed in 1998 an intergovernmental agreement to jointly produce a supersonic cruise missile, BrahMos and in 2007 two more intergovernmental agreements were signed for co-development and co-production of a Multi Role Transport Aircraft and a Firth Generation Fighter Aircraft. Thus, there has been emphasis on self-reliance and co-production with higher importance on promoting the participation of Indian private sector defence production. A 10-year self-reliance plan formulated in 1992, under the then Scientific Advisor to the Defence Minister, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, defined the self-reliance in the form of an index, reflecting the percentage share of indigenous content in total procurement expenditure. Mr Behera held that this definition serves as the only methodology for estimating the self-reliance index, primarily because of the difficulty of putting together a log of information about what is critical and what is not, and updating it regularly with technological development. However, this estimation is not straightforward, primarily because of lack of consistent data in the public domain. Mr Behera pointed out that India’s heavy dependence on arms import for defence preparedness defies the very objective of self-reliance that it has set for itself. The 1992 Abdul Kalam committee indicated that the share of indigenous contribution to total procurement expenditure would progressively increase from 1992-93 estimation of 30 per cent to 70 per cent by 2005. Although India has developed a vast defence industrial base over the years, the objective of achieving 70 per cent self-reliance has not been achieved till now. He concluded by stating that the self-reliance index has barely improved from 1992-93 estimation of 30 per cent to 36.4 per cent in 2011-12 which indicates the failure of India’s defence industrialisation process and demands serious retrospection. Major Points of Discussion and Suggestions:
Remarks by the Chairperson Outlining the present status of self-reliance in India’s defence production, Mr Vinod Kumar Misra said that the extent of India’s arms imports hamper indigenisation of its Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs). Imports of defence raw-materials and technologies have also been a problem. In addition, it needs to sustain those imported technologies for a long time. However, self-reliance in defence production is a log term process and it will gradually take place in India. In this context, India’s new offset policy can be a significant game changer. However, for its success, it needs to identify the kind of defence technologies that it wants to manufacture and then should focus on creating capacity on those core items. Mr Misra pointed out that India’s defence production sector and R&D also suffer capability gap and the Joint Ventures with Russia and Israel for co-production and development of defence equipment can be one way of meeting this capability gap. There is also a strong case for increasing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the defence production sector but India has to find out the ways to give a push to it. So far as policy announcement is concerned, Indian government has recently issued policy guidelines for engaging the private sector. Some progress has been made in this regard but still time will take in involving private enterprises in big projects. Report prepared by Dr Saroj Bishoyi, Research Assistant, IDSA |
Defence Economics & Industry | ||||
Special Address - US Secretary for Defence, Mr Leon E. Panetta, on 'Indo-US Defence Relations' | June 06, 2012 | Leon E. Panetta | 1600 to 1700 hrs | Speeches and Lectures |
Leon E. Panetta, US Secretary for Defence |
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3rd CICIR Forum | May 30, 2012 to May 31, 2012 | Bilateral |
Venue: China Institute of Contemporary International Relations (CICIR), Beijing, China |