IDSA Comments - MP-IDSA

North Korea continues to defy the world

True to its planned schedule, North Korea defied warnings from the international community on 5 April 2009, launching a rocket capable of reaching Alaska and Hawaii. As was expected, it...

Rajaram Panda |
April 13, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

Israel’s Iran Dilemma

As the new government headed by Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu takes charge in Jerusalem, it seems that there are no easy solutions to what Israel perceives to be its central...

S. Samuel C. Rajiv |
April 08, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

North Korea in International Limelight over its Space Development Programme

North East Asia’s fragile peace is being threatened by North Korea’s planned launch between 4 and 8 April over Japanese territory of a communication satellite. The US and its allies...

Injecting New Dynamism in US-Australia Ties

Labour Party Prime Minister of Australia, Kevin Rudd, has been in office for nearly one and a half years after his unexpected victory over John Howard in late 2007. For...

Nepal: New ‘Strategic Partner’ of China?

There has been a major shift in China’s foreign policy towards Nepal since the Maoist ascendance to power. China had earlier adopted a policy of ‘non-intervention’ in the internal matters...

Nihar R. Nayak |
March 30, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

Obama’s Overtures to Iran

US President Barack Obama’s landmark appeal to the Iranian people for a shift away from decades of confrontation was a significant move in the right direction. Obama’s videotaped message on...

M. Mahtab Alam Rizvi |
March 30, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

Japan’s Response to Sea Piracy

In its efforts to check the piracy menace, Japan deployed two Maritime Self Defense Force (MSDF) destroyers - Sazanami and Samidare - on March 14, 2009 in the Gulf of...

Pranamita Baruah |
March 30, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

Needless Apprehensions about the CISF (Amendment) Act 2008

The Indian Parliament has recently passed the Central Industrial Security Force (Amendment) Bill 2008, paving the way for the government to provide Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) security to private...

Om Shankar Jha |
March 19, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

Volatility in Japanese Politics Intensifies following fundraising Scandal

Ichiro Ozawa, leader of the opposition Democratic Party of Japan and projected to be the man most likely to become Japan’s next prime minister, has become dangerously entangled in an...

Rajaram Panda |
March 18, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

Sheikh Hasina’s Regional Anti-Terror Task Force Unlikely to Takeoff

Counter-terrorism and elimination of religious extremism were important parts of Sheikh Hasina’s election manifesto. But the concern about terrorism is not limited to top Awami League leaders and is also...

Anand Kumar |
March 16, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

Obama’s New Engagement Policy Towards Japan

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s recent four-stop swing through Asia – Japan, Indonesia, South Korea and China – in her first tour as Secretary of State represented a strong...

Rajaram Panda |
March 09, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

Complicity of State Actors in Chittagong Arms Haul Case Revealed

India’s position stands vindicated. It had for long maintained that not only have insurgents from the north east found safe havens in Bangladeshi soil but that they have enjoyed the...

Sreeradha Datta |
March 09, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

Consequences of the BDR Mutiny

The mutiny by the troops of Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) on 26 February 26 was extraordinarily brutal. The mutiny toll was about 81 with 72 still missing. Many of these were...

Arvind Gupta |
March 09, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

Is the BDR Mutiny a Conspiracy?

The mutiny by Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) soldiers which started on February 25, 2009 with the brutal killing of army officers has sent shock waves through Dhaka. Even though many in...

Smruti S. Pattanaik |
March 05, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

The Obama Administration and China

Prior to the Democrats coming to power the Chinese Communist Party believed that the Barack Obama administration will push harder on Human Rights and other sensitive issues. The stability in...

Gunjan Singh |
March 05, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

Initiatives to transform the Army Officer Corps

The defence forces have prided themselves in their consistent engagement with the frontiers of their profession. This is an index of their professionalism. India’s military, in particular, is rated highest...

Ali Ahmed |
March 05, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

Use of White Phosphorous in Gaza and Some Limitations of International Law

Notwithstanding calls for the establishment of an independent and international commission of inquiry to investigate war crimes committed by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups...

S. R. Subramanian |
March 04, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

Actions against Outsourcing: Missing the Wood for the Trees

The related issues of H1B visas and outsourcing have once again come to the fore and could prove to be a troublesome issue in India-US relations. In his address to...

Cherian Samuel |
March 03, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

China’s Naval Force Projection off Somalia

Call it China’s new military diplomacy or emerging naval strategy. A Chinese naval fleet arrived in the Gulf of Aden off the Somalian coast on January 6, 2009 to carry...

S. Rajasimman |
March 02, 2009 |
IDSA Comments

Violence in Pakistan: Trend Analysis January 2009

The first month of the new calendar year saw a reversal of the trend of declining casualties witnessed during the last three months, whilst the incidents of violence continued to...