Journal of Defence Studies

Multidimensional Peacekeeping Protection Mandate and Recalibration of the UN Military Peacekeepers

The United Nations has introduced a layered approach to UN peacekeeping operations (PKOs) with wide-ranging enablers based on many reviews. Accordingly, a new resolution on the protection of civilians (POC) was adopted by the UN Security Council in 1999. The study attempts to understand the complexities of multidimensional PKOs, POC, 2019 policy, specific role of the UN military force and the need for new structuring and training of the UN military presence in the mission areas.

Assessment of India’s UN Missions and Impact on Host Nations

Multifunctional peace operations under the umbrella of United Nations (UN) have become an integral part of the global society to the extent that they are now one of the major regulating institutions of international relations.

Sino-Russian Cooperation and Competition in Central Asia

The Central Asian region with its five post-Soviet republics is geopolitically important for its proximity to Afghanistan, West Asia, China, Russia and the Caucasus. These republics have been wooed by many powers keen to gain access to their rich resources. Russia, the regional hegemon has been slipping in the economic domain, while China’s fortunes and national power are on the rise. This article seeks to examine the standing of these two powers that are both cooperating and competing in Central Asia and suggest the way ahead for India

Combat Stress in Conflicts: Home and Abroad

International peacekeeping operations have been one of the hallmark developments in the post-Cold War era. While it is true that these operations started almost immediately after the end of World War II, they really gathered momentum post the fall of Berlin Wall in 1989. The shadow of veto by warring permanent members gave way to cooperation and greater consensus emerged to solve the world’s problems in trouble spots through United Nations (UN)-led multinational peacekeeping operations. The UN peacekeeping has a long but checkered history.

Belarus: Russia’s Cat’s Paw

Belarus has managed to escape the scanner of major countries reserved for rogue nations despite blatant violations of the laid-down international rules. Alexander Lukashenko, the President of Belarus, despite his moral credentials badly shaken after trumped up elections in 2020 still seems to be holding firm ground due to the unstinted support offered by Russia, an acknowledged military powerhouse.

Recalling Air Power in the Indian Context

With the announcement of the proposed theaterisation of the existing structure of the armed forces, there have been numerous exchanges of ideas, formal and informal discourses, official and unofficial exchange of views and perspectives in recent months. During such exchanges, a standpoint of equating the Air Force of a nation with the Artillery has emerged and it requires to be put in a proper perspective. Indian military history has unfortunately not highlighted the lethality and importance of air power, which is the root cause for incorrect understanding of air power.

About the Genomic Origin and Direct Source of the Pandemic Virus

The debate over the genomic origin and direct source of the pandemic virus has intensified due to recent analyses concerning activities that had taken place in Wuhan prior to the initial outbreak and thereafter. Revisiting various aspects which are related to this development appears to be imperative, as certain early indications seem to converge with those analyses, while other recent analyses are contradictory.

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Return of the Old Giant to Indo-Pacific

The Indo-Pacific has evolved into a major geopolitical realm, drawing the attention of key regional and non-regional players. The announcement of AUKUS—a security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US)—on 15 September 2021 has added a significant aspect to the defence arrangement within the Indo-Pacific.

Formation of Reserve Components of the Indonesian Armed Forces: SWOT Analysis

The current as well as future dynamics of strategic environment are likely to face threats that are multidimensional in nature. Indonesia needs a total state defence system that integrates the capabilities of military and non-military. To actualise this ambition, Law No. 23 of 2019, along with Government Regulation No. 3 of 2021, is presently targeting the interests of the reserve components. This research analyses citizens’ role in the formulation of reserve components in land, sea, and air domains using Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats (SWOT) analysis.

Minan Sinulingga , Goki Sihombing , Rendy Ananta Prasetya |
January-March 2022 |
Journal of Defence Studies

Institutions that Shaped India: DRDO, by Ravi Kumar Gupta

With India approaching the 75th year of independence in 2022, there are few institutions that can narrate the roller-coaster journey that the country has taken to become a modern nation. The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), a premier research and development (R&D) wing of the Ministry of Defence (MoD), is one such institution. It is due to the persistent and painstaking efforts of DRDO that the country can hold its head high among the comity of nations in key defence and strategic technologies.