History of Cold War Estrangement to Strategic Partnership and the Evolution of India–US Defence Cooperation Indo-US relations witnessed considerable swings during the first five decades post India’s independence, shaped by geopolitical challenges and Cold War dynamics. Defence cooperation between the two nations began in 1962, when India, confronting conflict with China, sought assistance from President Kennedy. However, a deep rift developed as the US aligned with Pakistan during the 1971 Indo-Pak War and deteriorated further after India’s nuclear tests. Despite these setbacks, the turn of the 21st century marked a shift towards engagement, leading to a steady progression towards a strategic partnership. Over time, mutual interests, regional security concerns, and India’s growing global stature contributed to strengthening defence cooperation. The world has transitioned into a new era of strategic rivalry, where the China factor is driving India and the United States towards closer cooperation. This article explores the historical evolution of Indo-US defence relations, analysing the transition from Cold War estrangement to strategic partnership. Guru Saday Batabyal | January-March 2025 | Journal of Defence Studies
Creating Conditions for Utilisation of Higher Defence Outlay Defence expenditure must be aligned with operational requirements and the MoD's capacity to utilise the funds rather than be pegged to a certain percentage of the GDP. Amit Cowshish | | IDSA Comments
The Quad, Africa, and Competition for Critical Minerals The Quad can offer a compelling, inclusive alternative to China’s mineral dominance through an Africa-centered critical minerals strategy. Mohanasakthivel J | | Issue Brief
Trial by Water: Indus Basin and India-Pakistan Relations Publisher: Penguin Random House India In 1947, the Indian subcontinent was partitioned, and Pakistan was born. A shared heritage, a composite culture and centuries-old bonds between people, all seemed to vanish overnight. Nowhere was this rupture more profound than in the Indus Basin—once a unified lifeline of the region, now fragmented by sovereign borders, its rivers flowing through two nations immediately at odds with each other. The Indus Waters Treaty was signed in 1960, proving that even bitter adversaries could cooperate over shared resources. Yet, it never brought lasting peace. The treaty was suspended by India in April 2025 as a punitive measure in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack, and its future remains shrouded in uncertainty. Can it still endure and adapt? Perhaps the time has come for a new arrangement—one that is not just inevitable but essential. This book traces the turbulent history of the Indus Basin and examines how the Indus Waters Treaty has been shaped by the region’s ever-evolving political dynamics. It explores the role of key leaders on both sides, as well as external pressures, in shaping and reshaping one of the world’s most critical transboundary water agreements. The Indus Basin has been a witness to conflict, compromise and survival. And if you seek to understand the true nature of India–Pakistan relations, start with the rivers that bind them. Trial by Water leads us in that direction. ISBN: 9780143471028, Price: ₹ 599/- E-copy available Uttam Kumar Sinha | | Book
Mahabharata’s Strategic Insights: Navigating the Dharmic Compass Publisher: Pentagon Press The appeal and allure of the Mahabharata have remained undiluted for centuries. It is the first text that lays the foundation of Indian strategic thought. This book's analysis is based on the English translation of The Critical Edition of the Mahabharata, by the late Bibek Debroy. The epic falls in the unique category of itihasa, which translates to “it happened like this”. Drawing on historical facts, its primary aim remains deriving lessons and contextualising these with the present. It is a living text with a timeless appeal. The Mahabharata is a foundational text for Indian strategic thought. It successfully distils ancient strategic wisdom through a combination of descriptive, didactic and prescriptive approaches. In doing so, dharma remains its abiding spiritual, philosophical and strategic anchor, with Krishna as its primary architect. This guidance frames the objective of yoga kshema as the raja dharma of a king, or a state, in contemporary times. The book discusses a conceptual framework for wars. This includes its conditional acceptability, planning process and conduct. The book also compares key aspects of the Mahabharata with the Arthashastra and Nitisara, to identify common elements of strategic thought over a period spanning almost 2,000 years. ISBN: 978-81-988370-7-3, Price: ₹ 995/- E-copy available Vivek Chadha | | Book
Ayub’s Foreign Policy: From Alliance to Equidistanc The departure of President Ayub from the Pakistani scene after a decade of almost unchallenged supremacy provides us with an opportune moment for the evaluation of his contribution in the sphere of Pakistan’s foreign policy. Like every other sphere of Pakistani life, the foreign policy of Pakistan, as it has developed over the last decade, has been primarily the handiwork of President Ayub. Mohammed Ayoob | January-February 2025 | Strategic Analysis
The Antarctic Regime: Conflict and Change at the Frozen Frontier The management and utilization of a number of resources of the planet earth, over which no single nation has exclusive jurisdiction, have given rise to a number of knotty problems, usually termed as issues of ‘Global Commons“. A number of these issues have come to the fore in the global agenda in the 1970s.Footnote1 The creation of acceptable norms, procedures, rules, and institutional structures to manage these resources has proved to be legally complex and politically contentious. C. Raja Mohan | January-February 2025 | Strategic Analysis
The Economic Weapon: The Rise of Sanctions as a Tool of Modern War | Nicholas Mulder, Yale University Press, New Haven, CT, 2022, 416 pp., Price: US$ 24.00 (Paperback), ISBN: 9780300270488 The Economic Weapon came at a time when Western policymakers were struggling to sanction one of the world’s largest economies, Russia, over the war in Ukraine. Nicholas Mulder, an Assistant Professor of modern European history at Cornell University, traces the evolution of the ‘economic weapon’ or what is now referred to as ‘economic sanction’, since its origin in 1914 until the foundation of the UN. In Prof. Mulder’s view, the role of the economic weapon was not given its proper space in World War history. Through the historical account, the author explores how the emergence of the economic weapon during wartime and especially during peacetime played a role in shaping the currents of various events. Subhash Bhambhu | January-February 2025 | Strategic Analysis
