Looming Spectre of Conflict in Eastern Europe? Kremlin’s increasingly assertive stance on the troop build-up along the Russia–Ukraine border can be viewed as not just prompted by Ukraine’s potential NATO membership but also as Russia underscoring its place as a stakeholder in shaping European security architecture. Rajorshi Roy | January 03, 2022 | IDSA Comments
Lebanon: A Country Stuck in Multiple Crises Prolonged political crisis, social unrest, pre-existing economic misery, and outbreak of a diplomatic crisis between Lebanon and the Gulf countries have left Lebanon in a debilitated state. Systemic reforms to tackle the economic, political, diplomatic and humanitarian challenges, are the need of the hour. Jatin Kumar | January 01, 2022 | IDSA Comments
Xi Jinping’s ‘Chinese Dream’: China’s Renewed Foreign and Security Policy Publisher: Routledge Taylor & Francis The author analyses the influence of Xi’s 'Chinese Dream' on China’s foreign relations and security postures. Xi Jinping’s rise has led to a paradigm shift in many aspects of China’s domestic and international politics. A key element of this has been the ideological vision shorthanded as the 'Chinese Dream', combining elements of nationalism, Confucian ideology, and economic expansionism. Singh evaluates the various changes in China’s nominally communist ideology in the post-Mao era, with an emphasis on the implications for China’s economic and security relations with other countries. He particularly focusses on China’s approach to South Asia and the Indian Ocean Region, key elements of China’s strategy. An insightful guide to understanding the direction of China’s foreign and security policy, and especially its impact on India–China relations. ISBN: 9781032375328 , Price: £84.00 Prashant Kumar Singh | | Book
1971 India-Pakistan War: 50 Years Later Publisher: Pentagon Press India’s decisive and historic victory in the 1971 India–Pakistan War is considered to be one of the landmark geopolitical events in the history of the sub-continent. One of the shortest wars in world history, fought for a mere 13 days, the lightning campaign brought about a change in the world’s perception of India, marking its recognition as an important regional power. The combined impact created by the resolute people of Bangladesh and the professional approach of the Indian state, successfully converted a catastrophe of epic proportions into a victory of the people, won through their stoic resolve and the professionalism of the armed forces. There have been a number of books, memoirs and articles over the years that have documented first-person and academic accounts of events that marked this period of history. Not surprisingly, most were written during the period succeeding the war and after the birth of Bangladesh. This book is an attempt to evaluate events with the benefit of a five-decade time lapse. In doing so, the focus remains firmly on the military aspects of the war, accompanied by a brief account of political events, diplomacy, influence of major powers, public perception and the role of Mukti Bahini. ISBN:9789390095698 , Price: ? 1495 E-copy available Amb. Sujan R. Chinoy , Bipin Bakshi , Vivek Chadha | | Book
Indo-Bangladesh Talks on Sharing of the Ganga Waters A major irritant in Indo-Bangladesh relations has been the question of sharing Ganga waters between the two countries. Though negotiations for the settlement of the problem have been going on for the last five-and-a-half years, a final agreement is still elusive. At times, it appeared that the two countries would not reach any agreement and the issue would affect their relations. Fortunately, the deadlock, which persisted for some time, was broken in April last. Now it appears that India and Bangladesh have been negotiating satisfactorily and a final agreement would be signed soon. O.N. Mehrotra | January 2022 | Strategic Analysis
Bangla Desh and Our Policy Options It is necessary to have a detached and realistic assessment of the military situation in Bangla Desh. During the last one week, our press reports were over-optimistic and these reports need careful reassessment now. K. Subrahmanyam | January 2022 | Strategic Analysis
India Versus China: Why They Are Not Friends ‘We have no eternal allies and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are eternal and perpetual, and those interests it is our duty to follow’, thus spoke Lord Palmerston in 1848, then still the foreign minister of the United Kingdom.1 ‘Nations neither have enemies nor friends but only interests, the national interest’ is an aphorism which has been subsequently attributed from Winston Churchill to Henry Kissinger. Masih Ullah Khan | January 2022 | Strategic Analysis
Conundrum of an Island: Sri Lanka’s Geopolitical Challenges Sri Lanka, one of the most strategic islands in the Indian Ocean, is mired in several domestic political, security and strategic challenges since the end of the armed ethnic conflict in May 2009. However, with the defeat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and the post-war economic boom, it was largely believed that no one would shed tears anymore in the teardrop island. Such hopes and expectations were belied when the country witnessed multiple terror attacks in different locations in Colombo on 21 April 2019. Gulbin Sultana | January 2022 | Strategic Analysis
EU-Turkey Relations: A New Direction for EU Foreign Policy? Turkey’s desire to be part of the European state system goes back to the Ottoman era. The Ottoman elites began to recognize the need for military, technological and administrative modernization towards the late eighteenth century, setting the tone for future relations with Europe. Notwithstanding Turkey’s search for a European identity, the European elites always hesitated in accepting Turkey as part of the European civilization. Yatharth Kachiar | January 2022 | Strategic Analysis
Irrawaddy Imperatives: Reviewing India’s Myanmar Strategy Irrawaddy Imperatives has hit the stands at a time when one needs to remind Indian policy planners—now wholly focused west on Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover—that Myanmar is an equally, if not more important, neighbour saddled with an equally serious crisis, which may have a much more adverse impact on India’s ‘Act East’ policy. Subir Bhaumik | January 2022 | Strategic Analysis