Journal of Defence Studies

Since the last decade of the twentieth century, network centricity has profoundly transformed warfighting and the outlook of the military. The next level of the networking ladder is Internet of Things (IoT), which has already started to disruptively change the ways in the civil domain, bringing a considerable autonomy to various processes by linking of a plethora of smart devices that are talking to each other. Militaries, in the near future, are also likely to see similar proliferation of IoT, which will bring a material change to their functioning and conduct of operations.

• Atul Pant |
• April-June 2019 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

Kashmir has been experiencing new dynamics of conflict. Though not entirely unknown to students of ethnic conflicts, the dynamics and complications that have developed over a period of time have made the Kashmir conflict extremely complicated given the number of actors involved in it. Additionally, it has been seen that the semblance of peace in the state of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) has often been mistaken as resolution of the conflict.

• Rajrajeshwari Singh |
• April-June 2019 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

National security refers to securing a nation’s citizens, territory, resources, assets, ideologies, institutions, and interests against threats which may emanate from changing geopolitical state of affairs, changing relations between nations, groups, races, sects, advancing technology and changing ideology. In the prevailing complex geopolitical scenario, India’s national security is facing new challenges and acquiring new dimensions with every passing year.

• Atul Pant |
• January-March 2019 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

This article seeks to capture the domestic debate in India over China’s activities in the Indian Ocean. It engages the critical geopolitical articulation around formal, practical and popular geopolitics, and provides a narrow perspective on the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). It begins with a look at how India and China perceive the IOR, which is crucial to understand how the Indian Ocean is framed in the public consciousness in India.

• Rajdeep Pakanati |
• January-March 2019 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

Technology and the armed forces have a symbiotic relationship. Many technologies which are presently used in day-to-day life, like the Internet or navigation systems (global positioning system [GPS]), actually have a link to, or are derived from, military innovations. Artificial intelligence (AI) is one arena of present generation technology that militaries have been developing mainly for two purposes: first, for juxtaposing it on their existing defence architecture for its performance enhancement; and second, for developing new types of militarily instruments and weapon systems.

• Ajey Lele |
• January-March 2019 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

Ever since India and Pakistan emerged as declared nuclear weapon states in 1998, national security ideation in both countries has factored in the nuclear dimension in significantly different ways. While Pakistan views its nuclear arsenal as an offensive weapon against what it perceives to be an existential threat from India and a conduit to wage a proxy war in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), India has a nuanced perspective of nuclear weapons as primarily a credible deterrent and not a weapon of war fighting.

• Arjun Subramaniam |
• January-March 2019 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

In India in Nuclear Asia, authors Yogesh Joshi and Frank O’Donnell do a rigorous job of unpacking the layers that have constituted India’s nuclear journey, especially since going overtly nuclear in May 1998. They distil the key aspects pertaining to India’s nuclear force developments, the evolution and challenges facing its nuclear doctrine and the key rationales as they see underpinning New Delhi’s non-proliferation policies.

• S. Samuel C. Rajiv |
• January-March 2019 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

Warriors, with courage and integrity as their distinguishing traits, have been always respected. Skilful warriors, such as military aviators, have created a special place for themselves in the society. In this class, a very small section of fighter pilots has an iconic status. Adages like ‘All men are born equal, then a few become fighter pilots’ support this perception.

• Kishore Kumar Khera |
• January-March 2019 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

Article 108 of United Nations (UN) Charter states that the Charter can be amended if it is adopted by two-third members of the General Assembly and ratified by two-thirds of the members of UN, including the five Permanent Members, also known as the P-5. Changing international dynamics and the need for including hitherto unrepresented quarters further call for the restructuring of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). The role of UNSC has changed over the years and Hardeep Singh Puri’s book discusses the role of UNSC in resolving the crisis spanning Asia and Europe.

• Lakshmi Priya |
• January-March 2019 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

One of the first lessons a student of international politics is introduced to is that foreign policy is a compendium of continuity and change, of static and dynamic co-existence, mired in the national interest of the nation state. In the Indian context, in particular, the first political theorist the same student studies is the realist ancient thinker Kautilya. These elementary but indispensable lessons form the basis of Shyam Saran’s riveting work, How India Sees the World: Kautilya to the 21st Century.

• Shrabana Barua |
• October-December 2018 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

Decades after the deployment of the first peacekeeping operation (PKO)—United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO)—in 1948, the United Nations (UN) cannot boast of too many successes. The continued relevance of UN PKOs has thus come under criticism. In order to determine whether UN PKOs are still relevant, it is necessary to obtain a clear understanding of the reasons/factors for their success and failure, and thereafter assess their performance.

• A.K. Bardalai |
• October-December 2018 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

This book is a major contribution towards the field of military culture, one which has had shortage of literature traditionally. While the book primarily dwells on the counter-insurgency doctrine and military culture in the United States (US) and the United Kingdom (UK), it certainly provides modular lessons for counter-insurgency operations and military organisational behaviour throughout the world. Austin Long’s analysis tries to answer a key question: why are some armies better at counter-insurgency than others?

• Vivek Mishra |
• October-December 2018 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

‘The People Next Door’ is the name of a 1968 television (TV) series made into a 1970 Hollywood movie, a 1996 TV film, a 2008 novel, again a 2016 TV film, and, in the case of the book being reviewed, a non-fiction historical book. When we spend time in observing neighbours, the act has a voyeuristic feel.

• Ghanshyam Katoch |
• October-December 2018 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

The revival of the centuries-old ‘Silk Road at Sea’ into a 21st Century Maritime Silk Road (MSR) is an integral part of China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The Chinese White Paper on its vision for enhancing maritime cooperation broadly confirms this perception, since it considers maritime security assurance as the lynchpin of MSR initiatives. As its trade and overseas economic interests have been constantly growing, Beijing’s strategic concern about protection of these interests has magnified.

• Abhay Kumar Singh |
• October-December 2018 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

Three key developments unfolded in Japan in August 2018: the Ministry of Defence (MOD) released its annual Defence White Paper; requested a 2.1 per cent increase in the 2019 budget; and instituted an Exploratory Committee on the Future of Self Defence Forces (SDF) with the objective of reviewing the current National Defence Program Guidelines (NDPG) and the Mid-Term Defence Program (MTDP). Analysing these developments in the backdrop of Prime Minister Abe’s top priorities—managing the United States (US)-Japan alliance under the Trump Presidency and delivering on the ‘great responsibility’ of redefining Japanese post-war security orientation—unpacks Tokyo’s key challenges. These are, essentially, balancing between sharing greater burden within the alliance framework to ensure regional security on one hand, and weighing regional sensitivities and deeply fractured domestic constituencies on the other.

• Titli Basu |
• October-December 2018 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

Japan banks heavily on her security alliance with the United States (US) to ensure availability of requisite military capability in the region. China’s economic and military capabilities have grown in the last two decades, closing the gap with the US. With diminishing differential, especially with respect to China, the US’ deterrence power has gradually declined. Under these conditions, Japan has to develop Self-Defense Forces (SDF) capabilities to ensure that it, in combination with its alliance partner, the US, is able to meet national security challenges.

• Kishore Kumar Khera |
• October-December 2018 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

From entering the portals of a military academy till retirement, an officer remains deeply involved with training. From the initial days as a subaltern to, later on, assuming the responsibilities of a commanding officer who has to ensure that his unit is battle ready, the involvement with training is total. Later, in senior ranks, he is expected to put his experience to work in devising more meaningful and effective ways to train the nation’s military to be ready for the next war.

• Alok Deb |
• October-December 2018 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

A journalist by profession, Kallol Bhattacherjee has written extensively on South Asian affairs and on conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa. In writing The Great Game in Afghanistan, he has researched extensively into the personal records of John Gunther, who was the United States (US) Ambassador to India between 1985 and 1988. The author was also fortunate to be able to hold extensive interviews with Gunther post-2014 with Ambassador Ronen Sen, who was Rajiv Gandhi’s diplomatic aide in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) during this crucial period.

• N. Bahri |
• July-September 2018 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

Authoritarian regimes are increasingly taking recourse to sharp power as a preferred means of realising national interests. Sharp power weaves an intricate web of responses short of war, such as coercion, persuasion, political power, and inducements to further a nation’s interests, all the while concealing a long stick. China, in particular, has perfected the art of using sharp power in recent years, often investing large political capital and monies to impose its will on nations all over the globe.

• Mandip Singh |
• July-September 2018 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

Taking off in 1940 with the establishment of Hindustan Aircraft Limited (later named Hindustan Aeronautics Limited or HAL), the Indian aviation industry has grown in spurts over the past seven decades and more. During the initial phase, HAL provided maintenance support to various combat aircraft of the allied forces in World War II and, subsequently, commenced licenced production of combat aircraft. After Independence in 1947 and its nationalisation, HAL grew in strength to design combat aircraft.

• Kishore Kumar Khera |
• July-September 2018 |
• Journal of Defence Studies