Cancellation of the VVIP Helicopter Contract: Beginning of a Long haul? While there was perhaps no option for the MoD but to do what it has done, it would be naive to expect the seller to acquiesce in forfeiture of the bank guarantees, recovery of the sums allegedly paid in violation of the PCIP (assuming that it will be possible to recover this amount) and to simply take the three helicopters back without demur. Amit Cowshish January 06, 2014 IDSA Comments
Bangladesh Political Crisis and India`s Options India may have to maintain a two-pronged approach. At the governmental level, it will have to offer economic benefits and cooperation. However, a regime which is communally oriented may have to be dealt on a reciprocal basis. Gautam Sen January 06, 2014 IDSA Comments
3D Printing and Defence: A Silent Revolution In a 3D printing technology, an object is created layer by layer through a specially designed printer using plastic or other materials. The most striking thing about 3D printing is the way it can convert the digital inventory into physical objects thereby reducing the requirement of critical storage space drastically. Sanjiv Tomar January 03, 2014 IDSA Comments
‘Arab Spring’: Implications for India As India–Gulf relationship is taking an upward trajectory, and India’s stakes and interests are growing with time, it is time for India to adopt a formally articulated “Look West Policy” in line with the successful “Look East Policy”. This Policy Brief by the West Asia Centre of IDSA explores some policy options for India. Untitled January 02, 2014 Policy Brief
Indo-Pak DGsMO Meeting: One Step Forward, Two Steps Back Shorn of its rhetoric, the only tangible outcome discernible from the joint statement is the agreement on staging two flag meetings at the LoC. In fact, there are some questions that need to be asked, for example, why did the situation worsen to the extent that the DGsMO had to meet to affirm their commitment to maintain the sanctity of, and the ceasefire on, the LOC? Amit Cowshish January 02, 2014 IDSA Comments
Permanent Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee: Should the appointment be delayed further? Though the general elections are due this year, the need of the hour is to build a political consensus on the issue without further delay. It will be to the credit of the government if it is able to generate political consensus and appoint a Permanent Chairman CoSC or CDS. Vijai Singh Rana January 02, 2014 IDSA Comments
The Arab Uprising: The Unfinished Revolutions of the New Middle East by Marc Lynch Tunisia’s Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali was the first to fall to the thundering protests in that country in early 2010. Within a month, Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak was forced out of office by masses of protesters chanting against an authoritarian government that had closed its people off from every possible political avenue available to push for greater democratisation. The slogans Irhal [Leave!] and Al-Shaab Yureed Isqat al-Nizam [The People Want to Overthrow the Regime] reverberated from a tiny town on the periphery of the Arab world in Tunisia, to as far away as Yemen. Princy Marin George January 2014 Strategic Analysis
China’s Nightmare, America’s Dream: India as the Next Global Power by William H. Avery The rise of Asia, particularly China and India, is a significant development in the early 21st century. In the last three decades, China has transformed itself from an agricultural economy to a manufacturing economy. While China’s growing economic power has lifted more than 500 million people out of poverty, it has also modernised its defence sector. China is now playing an increasingly assertive role on the world stage. During the same period, India also registered significant progress in the economic and defence sectors. Saroj Bishoyi January 2014 Strategic Analysis
Confronting the Bomb: Pakistani and Indian Scientists Speak Out by Pervez Hoodbhoy (ed.) Eminent nuclear physicist Pervez Hoodbhoy and his co-authors in the seminal volume Confronting the Bomb: Pakistani and Indian Scientists Speak Out have defied the age-old perspective that nuclear weapons are the ultimate armaments of security. While courting controversy, the authors have presented nuclear issues considered taboo and yet critical. This is a bold attempt by a group of eminent scientists who ‘reject nuclear patriotism’ (p. xxii) and have delved into issues of ‘nuclear weapons, war, strategy and politics’ (p. Reshmi Kazi January 2014 Strategic Analysis
Never Forget National Humiliation: Historical Memory in Chinese Politics and Foreign Relations by Zheng Wang Scholars studying China are quite familiar with themes like national humiliation, nationalism as a new source of regime legitimacy vis-à-vis communism, and China’s anti-US and anti-Japan polemic. Zheng Wang’s book Never Forget National Humiliation captures the interrelated nature of these themes in a skilful manner and is a valuable addition to the study of Chinese nationalism. Prashant Kumar Singh January 2014 Strategic Analysis
