Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses
मनोहर पर्रिकर रक्षा अध्ययन एवं विश्लेषण संस्थान

Strategic Analysis

Gaurav Sen, Peril of the Pacific: Military Balance and Battle for Taiwan, New Delhi: KW Publishers Pvt Ltd, 2025

 The issue of the Taiwan Straits lies at the core of tensions governing the relationship between two great powers: the United States and China. Amidst the economic and technological developments of China came a strong wave of aggressive military modernization that took the world by surprise. This development, as was speculated, had its spillover effect and saw force posturing and power projection across the Indo-Pacific region. Read More

Indian Traces in Korean Culture: The Legend and Beyond

 Indian Traces in Korean Culture: The Legend and Beyond, by Renata Czekalska, is probably the first of its kind in the context of India–Korea cultural relations and examines the cultural diffusion between the two countries from the ancient period to contemporary times. Although a few book chapters and journal articles on India–Korea cultural relations were published in the past (Tikhonov Citation2014; Pankaj Citation1988), a full-fledged book on this issue has indeed been rare. In this regard, this book is definitely a worthy addition to the available literature on India–Korea relations. While political scientist Huntington (Citation1996) wrote about the ‘Clash of Civilizations’, this book has tried to highlight the cultural exchanges that have been taking place between the nations since ancient times, particularly between the distant lands of the Indian Subcontinent and the Korean Peninsula. The legendary Silk Road played a pivotal role in the transmission of Indian cultural traditions, and Buddhism spread into the Eurasian landmass through these ancient highways (Behera Citation2002). In the modern period also, the cultural exchanges between Europe and Asia continued as a number of Asian nations fell under the European colonial occupation and dominance. While the Indian Subcontinent became a colony of the European powers, Korean Peninsula came under the imperialist control of an Asian power. Despite having lost their independence to the foreign powers, Indians and Koreans continued to develop their interest about each other. The thoughts of Indian thinkers and scholars, such as Mahatma Gandhi, Rabindranath Tagore and Sarojini Naidu found acceptance in Korea. On the other hand, Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of independent India felt amused by the non-violent Korean freedom struggle against Japanese colonial rule (1910–1945). The cultural influence of India through legends, philosophical thoughts, religious scriptures, political values, literature and popular culture on Korea has been well articulated in the book. Read More

Negotiating with Pakistan

 Sometime last June, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi wrote to Yahya Khan, President and Martial Law Administrator of Pakistan, about the need for normalizing lndo–Pak relations, which have been in deep freeze since the war of 1965. Kewal Singh, who bore the letter, came back from Rawalpindi with undue optimism because no sooner had he mentioned a probable positive Pakistani response, than Rawalpindi reacted adversely. Once again, Foreign Minister Dinesh Singh voiced his optimism after a recent meeting with Pakistani diplomats at the UN, and Pakistan promptly came out with a totally opposite interpretation on the talks, even before he returned home. The Statesman of 10 July 1969 rightly gave the warning that ‘it is very easy to read too much in airport statements’. However, it would be rash to conclude from these two episodes that the Indian diplomats were so naive as to fall easy prey to Pakistan’s bluff and bluster. Nevertheless, it was not adequately appreciated that contradictions of a compulsively anti-India foreign policy operates far more sharply under Martial Law than during any other regime. No wonder, contacts between Indians and Pakistanis have been reduced almost to nothing by Yahya Khan removing the last operative contact of exchange of books and journals between the two countries. Read More

Pakistan’s Air Power

 Born of the partition assets of the pre-partition Indian Air Force, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) came of age towards the end of the fifties when, through free-supply of modern jet aircraft by the United States under the Mutual Security Agreement which Pakistan signed with the United States in May 1954, the PAF was transformed into an all-jet air-fleet. Since then, in instalments, Pakistan had received from the United States directly, or through their common military allies, fighters, fighter-bombers and bombers sufficient to form and equip about 10 combat squadrons, comprising 200 modern aircraft. Read More

Challenges to Deep-Decarbonization to Achieve Net Zero for India: A Review

 Achieving net-zero emissions is essential to limiting global warming, and India’s role is critical given its size, developmental needs, and rising energy demand. This article reviews recent academic and grey literature to identify key challenges to deep decarbonization in India, with a focus on the near term. It introduces a conceptual framework that groups these barriers into three broad categories: techno-economic, governance and institutional, and socio-economic and political economy. Within this structure, it analyses sector-specific obstacles in power, industry, and transport. The review highlights cost and financing barriers, regulatory and institutional limitations, and complex socio-political trade-offs. The article concludes by identifying opportunities for targeted interventions and outlines research and policy gaps that need urgent attention to ensure India’s transition to net zero aligns with its development priorities. Read More

Economy, Efficiency, and Equity: Significance of Gender-Balanced Militaries in the Global South

 The economic viability of ‘ideas’ is one of the primary driving forces in the policy landscape worldwide, and this principle needs to be employed in the service of gender equity and empowerment. This article makes a case for gender-balanced militaries via the efficiency, economy, and empiricism arguments. By looking at examples from South Asia, India in particular, the article demonstrates that interventions in gender balance are beneficial for the militaries in the Global South in both the short and the long term. Such interventions also allow the Global South to align their strategic goals with their socio-economic agenda. Read More

Landscaping Renewable Energy in Changing Dynamics of World Energy: India’s Response

 Energy security and climate change are prime concerns worldwide. Every nation has its own Nationally Determined Commitment, and it aspires to achieve net zero in a specific time frame. India too targets to achieve Net Zero by 2070. The large-scale exploitation of renewable energy can help to achieve Net Zero. The share of renewable energy in the total primary energy is expected to be more than 35 per cent by 2035. It has also been pledged that 40 per cent of the country’s electricity would be generated from non-fossil fuels, such as wind and solar. In response to the changing world energy dynamics, India has started positioning itself and accordingly implemented various policies and strategies. Read More

India-Oman Space Cooperation: Opportunities and Challenges

 Countries like the US, China, Russia and France are significantly increasing their space programme budgets. West Asian countries like the UAE and Oman are investing in space programmes and collaborating with India to develop space technology. This research explores India-Oman space cooperation and its implications for West Asia’s regional space security objectives and politics. The article argues that India and Oman have the potential to forge a robust space cooperation through strategic capabilities despite challenges due to competition and policy gaps. The research undertakes a descriptive and analytical approach followed by policy recommendations and relies largely on primary resources. Read More

Rediscovery of the Chola Dynasty – A Review of Lords of the Earth and Sea: A History of the Chola Empire

 The Chola Empire, a dominant South Indian dynasty that thrived between the 9th and 13th centuries CE, has captivated the attention of historians for over a century. The Empire is often celebrated for its administrative innovations, military conquests, naval expeditions, economic prosperity, and cultural achievements. Over time, various historians, both Indian and Western, have offered diverse interpretations and assessments of the Chola legacy. While early historians like K.A. Nilakanta Sastri laid the groundwork by celebrating the grandeur and efficiency of the Chola State, later scholars such as Burton Stein and Romila Thapar have provided more critical and nuanced readings. The Cholas are now seen not merely as conquerors and temple-builders but as complex agents of social, economic, and cultural change. Read More

Geopolitical Dimensions of India’s Coal Transition

 This study examines the complexities of India’s coal transition within the global energy landscape, where there is a persistent dominance of coal despite the increasing share of renewables in the energy mix. The article aims to situate winners of energy transition and observes how crises have impacted the transition trajectories of these countries. Evolving bilateral and regional relations with geopolitical winners illustrate India’s efforts to integrate advanced technologies for coal transition. The article highlights the necessity of balancing coal phase-down policies with technological advancements to meet developmental priorities and climate commitments. Read More

Stranded in Legal Ambiguity: Gilgit-Baltistan’s Fight for Identity

 This article examines the legal ambiguity surrounding Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), a disputed region administered by Pakistan, through expert interviews. It explores GB’s unclear status, tethered to the Kashmir issue, and Pakistan’s strategic perpetuation of this ambiguity to bolster its UN plebiscite stance, facilitate CPEC projects, and manage sectarian dynamics. Cosmetic reforms, like the 2009 Empowerment Order, fail to grant true autonomy, leaving locals disenfranchised. The study highlights local demands for provisional provincial status or self-governance, arguing that Pakistan’s dual rhetoric—claiming GB as integral yet disputed—undermines rights and fuels resentment, urging a re-evaluation of GB’s constitutional limbo. Read More

India’s Evolving Approach Towards the Gulf: From Bilateralism to Regionalism

 The Gulf and Indo-Pacific are the two strategic regions in India’s extended neighbourhood located, respectively, at the northwestern and southeastern flanks of the Indian Ocean and are key to the geopolitical competition between the United States (US) and China. As China is increasingly a challenge in India’s national security and foreign policy discourses, and the Indo-US partnership takes momentum, it might have implications for India’s approach to the Gulf region. Taking a neoclassical Realist frame of analysis, this article contextualizes the US-China tensions and India’s engagements with the Gulf and the Indo-Pacific regions to argue that the developments in the Indo-Pacific are an important factor to the shifts in India’s approach towards the Gulf. Read More

Cyberwarfare in Post-Colonial States: An Analysis of China’s Apps Ban in India

 Cyberwarfare has emerged as a critical dimension of modern conflicts, challenging traditional State-centric frameworks in international relations. As technology continues to advance, cyber attacks have the potential to cause significant disruptions to critical infrastructure and national security. This article examines how post-colonial vulnerabilities intersect with cyberwarfare, highlighting the interplay between State and non-State actors in hybrid warfare. Using China’s App ban in India as a case study, the article explores how colonial legacies exacerbate cybersecurity challenges in post-colonial States. It argues for a decolonized approach to war studies that integrates the roles of technology, culture, and governance in addressing evolving cyber threats, emphasizing the importance of cultural sensitivity and inclusive governance structures. By highlighting the inadequacies of current legal and policy frameworks, the study underscores the need for collaborative, inclusive strategies to counter cyber threats. Read More

Beyond the Facade of Azadi: POK’s Struggle for Political Autonomy

 The territories of the so-called ‘Azad Jammu and Kashmir’ (AJK) and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), known together as Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK), hold immense geostrategic significance while remaining at the heart of a deeply contested political discourse within the broader Kashmir issue. Despite ‘AJK’s ostensible branding as ‘Azad’ or ‘free’ and GB’s glorification as Pakistan’s ‘crown jewel’, these characterizations obscure a reality of constrained autonomy, overshadowed by Islamabad’s overarching federal control and the formidable grip of Pakistan’s security apparatus. Read More

India’s Roadmap for Small Modular Reactors

 The Indian Union Budget for the fiscal year 2025–26 provisioned ₹ 20,000 crore for the Nuclear Energy Mission aimed at advancing research and development in Small Modular Reactors (SMRs), to operationalize at least five indigenously developed SMRs by 2033 (PIB Citation2025a). This is a part of the larger objective to instal 100 GW of nuclear power capacity by 2047, which currently amounts to a mere 8.18 GW, i.e., 1.74 per cent of India’s total electricity generation capacity. Moreover, the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) is actively designing three types of SMRs—Bharat Small Modular Reactor (200 MW), Small Modular Reactor (55 MW), and Gas-cooled high-temperature reactor meant for hydrogen production (PIB Citation2025b). The development of the SMRs will involve Indian private industry for the first time. Further, India is also collaborating with foreign companies in this endeavour. To address concerns raised by private players, the Government has established separate Task Forces to amend the AERB, Citation1962, and the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act (CLNDA), 2010. The budgetary allocation, a time-bound action plan to develop SMRs and the intended legislative changes show that the Government is serious about the development of SMRs. Against this backdrop, the Commentary tries to gauge the significance of the SMRs in India’s strategic calculus. How will the proposed amendments change India’s nuclear energy landscape? What are India’s global engagements in the field of SMRs? What are the challenges in the path of India’s acceptance of SMRs? Read More
strategic-analysis

Institutions, Journals and Discourse: Legacy of Strategic Analysis

 Strategic thought has long found its sharpest expression in the in-house journals of leading policy institutions. These publications serve as repositories of insights, platforms for debate, and at times, instruments of influence. Strategic Analysis, the flagship journal of the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA), is a notable example, charting the trajectory of strategic scholarship in India. Read More

Strategic Conundrums: Reshaping India’s Foreign Policy

 What are the domestic factors shaping India’s foreign policy? Where do the opportunities and challenges for India’s foreign policy come from? How can India navigate a tumultuous world where events within and beyond its control impact it? Ambassador Rajiv Sikri answers these questions in Strategic Conundrums: Reshaping India’s Foreign Policy, which builds on his previous book Challenges and Strategies: Rethinking India’s Foreign Policy (Sage Publications, 2009). Strategic Conundrums does not have a core argument but takes stock of Indian foreign policy developments since 2014, when the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power for the first time, while also analysing the trajectory of diplomatic relations with countries before 2014. The depth of analysis in the book, drawn from the author’s experience as a diplomat is evident in the analysis. Read More

Voices of the Unvoiced: Women’s Struggle for Education in Khyber Pukhtunkhwa, Pakistan

 Voices of the Unvoiced is a deeply moving and painstakingly researched book,Footnote1 which explores the various challenges faced by PakhtunFootnote2 women as they seek education in the culturally complex and war-torn province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. An academic treatise and personal testament, this book is the result of five years of intense research, including a doctoral dissertation and postdoctoral study. It combines feminist theory, socio-historical analysis, and ethnographic storytelling to highlight the tenacity and resilience of (Pakhtun) women in a patriarchal society. It offers a timely reflection on gender, education, and empowerment in a region grappling with the legacies of armed conflict and cultural conservatism. Read More

Kashmir Under 370: A Personal History by J&K’s Former Director General of Police

 Soon after acceding to India in October 1947, the princely State of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) became synonymous with what was to be known as ‘the Kashmir issue’, ‘the Kashmir conflict’, ‘the Kashmir problem’ or ‘the Kashmir dispute’. From India’s standpoint, Kashmir’s embroilment was mainly due to Pakistan’s invasion of the state, the geopolitically-motivated mess at the UN (when India registered its complaint on the Pakistani aggression) and the retention of territory by Pakistan it illegally occupied during the invasion. Within India and outside, the span of 78 years post Pakistan’s invasion has produced an ocean of literature on multiple issues concerning the former state. Comparatively, there are fewer books that have come out after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019. Obviously, the rescinding of the special status from Jammu & Kashmir is still fresh andmore importantly, the new reality is still to sink in completely. Read More

Strategic Currents: China and US Competition for Influence

 In the aftermath of the Cold War, the resurgence of Russia and the swift ascent of China have reignited an era of intense great power competition. The United States’ National Security Strategy 2017, which formally identified Russia and China as strategic competitors, marked a pivotal moment in the crystallization of this moment. The pursuit of technological supremacy is at the heart of the competition, with the US and China moving beyond bilateral disputes to exert global influence through alliance formation, setting technological standards, and competing for control in key regions like the Indo-Pacific, Southeast Asia, the Korean Peninsula, and South Asia. Bernard F. W. Loo and James Char’s Strategic Currents: China and US Competition for Influence presents a timely and empirically grounded analysis of the US–China strategic rivalry, with a particular emphasis on Southeast Asia’s adaptive responses within an increasingly contested international order. Read More
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