Defence Innovations in India: The Fault Lines The Occasional Paper examines India's defence innovation performance, especially of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the defence industry. The paper argues that the innovation performance of these two players is constrained by lack of a higher organisational structure which could provide direction and required thrust to the indigenous R&D. Laxman Kumar Behera | | Occasional Papers
Need for Inclusive Governance Structures in the North-East The Centre must reiterate its commitment to uphold the Constitutional provisions enshrined in Article 371, expand the scope of the Sixth Schedule, and empower the autonomous council institutions in the North-East. Gautam Sen | December 17, 2014 | IDSA Comments
The Islamic State’s Forays in North Africa: Libya, Tunisia and Egypt China, like Russia, suffers from domestic terrorism (the Uyghur East Turkestan Islamic Movement). Daesh leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has put China on a list of countries accused of persecuting Muslims, thus making it a target for jihad. Tuva Julie Engebrethsen Smith | December 17, 2014 | IDSA Comments
The 2014 Mid-term Elections in the United States There are many reasons for the decision of the people to vote for the Republican Party in these elections ranging from economy, governance, foreign policy decisions, the mid-term factor and mostly President Obama's unpopularity Aakriti Sethi | December 17, 2014 | Backgrounder
Sri Lankan Presidential Elections: India’s Stance It will be in India`s interest to adopt a neutral posture vis-à-vis the contestants in the January 2015 Sri Lankan Presidential elections. Gautam Sen | December 15, 2014 | IDSA Comments
Russia’s Military Cooperation Agreement with Pakistan: An Assessment The military cooperation agreement between Russia and Pakistan raises two pertinent questions: What are the driving factors behind Russia’s Pakistan strategy? And should India be concerned? Rajorshi Roy | December 15, 2014 | IDSA Comments
LUH Acquisition Programme: Which Way is it Headed? It is difficult to visualise how the Russian offer to make LUH in India could be actualised unless the government invokes ‘strategic considerations’ for making it in India or signs an inter-governmental agreement for that purpose. Amit Cowshish | December 15, 2014 | IDSA Comments
Comparing ‘Boko Haram’ and the ‘Islamic State’ Essentially local Islamist extremist groups such as the Boko Haram, which thrive on the domestic social and economic deprivations, seem to be moving towards collaboration with international Islamist groups. This phenomenon is not new, considering the links of Somali groups with the Al-Qaeda. Saurabh Mishra | October-December 2014 | Africa Trends
India-Mozambique Relations: Towards Fresh Opportunities? India's historic ties with Mozambique have got a boost in recent years with several high level visits from the country including that of Mozambican President in 2010 and the Mozambican Foreign Minister Oldemiro Baloi in November 2014. These visits are important in terms of India's growing interest in Mozambique's energy sector. Ruchita Beri | October-December 2014 | Africa Trends
Obama’s Policy towards Africa: A Blend of Competition and Roadblocks Much was anticipated from his administration, especially with regard to working more closely with the African continent. But it was only in his second term beginning 2013 that he managed to focus on the African countries by initiating the US-Africa Leaders Summit in August 2014. Aakriti Sethi | October-December 2014 | Africa Trends
