50 Years of the Indus Water Treaty: An Evaluation Rivers are more than what Samuel T. Coleridge poetically expressed in Kubla Khan: ‘meandering with mazy motion’ and falling into the ‘sunless sea’. Rivers are life-givers, carrying a mystic and sacred quality about them. That they are oft described as being ‘mighty’—the mighty Amazon; the mighty Nile; the mighty Brahamaputra; the mighty Murray; the mighty Mississippi and Missouri—is hardly mystifying. Civilizations have grown around it and flourished. In contemporary politics the salience of rivers cannot be overlooked both in terms of being drivers of cooperation and conflict. Uttam Kumar Sinha | September 2010 | Strategic Analysis
Kashmir: Policy in a Time of Contending Realities The coexistence of contending realities in Kashmir is a natural corollary of the transition from conflict to peace. A successful transition to peace is not only a test of Indian secularism, but also of Indian democracy. Arpita Anant | August 31, 2010 | IDSA Comments
The Upcoming Nalanda University The new Nalanda University now being planned to be rebuilt will soon provide momentum to the systematic study of Buddhism in India of various shades and nuances. P. K. Gautam | August 31, 2010 | IDSA Comments
China’s Denial of Visa to the Indian General: Not So Incomprehensible The various diplomatic rows and even the border problem are symptoms of the larger problems that exist between India and China – the competition for status, influence and power. Prashant Kumar Singh | August 30, 2010 | IDSA Comments
The Sochi Summit: Fresh Moves on The Grand Eurasian Chessboard At their second Summit in Sochi on August 18, 2010, Russia, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Tajikistan agreed to reinforce their cooperation. The United States has supported the Russian initiative due to its own compulsions and the China factor. India needs to pursue a well considered “Eurasian Heartland” policy in the context of these developments. Smita Purushottam | August 27, 2010 | Issue Brief
America Leaves Iraq: A Strategic Appraisal As the latest wave of deadly bombings across Iraq vividly demonstrates, the war-torn country has a long way to go before it achieves an acceptable level of stability. Mahan Abedin | August 27, 2010 | IDSA Comments
Pentagon Report on China: Assessment or Exaggeration? Even though the report is fairly cautious in what it says and does not highlight anything new, the reactions on the Chinese side have not been that positive. Gunjan Singh | August 26, 2010 | IDSA Comments
If India Tests? The Implications for the Indo-U.S. Civil-Nuclear Deal In the event of a test, it’s a safe bet that several factors will play into determining U.S. response. This response will be constrained by the strength of the U.S.-India relationship. Further, due to India's deepening nuclear ties with the rest of the world, any U.S. response may have only a modest impact on India. Justine Isola | August 26, 2010 | Issue Brief
Portuguese-speaking countries: a new niche for Indian foreign policy? If India wants to engage with the “Global South” in a more meaningful way, it should recognize its Anglophone bias and consider developing relations with Portuguese-speaking countries and thus open one more front in its foreign policy. Constantino Xavier | August 26, 2010 | IDSA Comments
Indonesia and the challenge of Papuan separatism Many Papuans prefer to internationalise their plight and seek a third party to settle the issue as they do not trust the Jakarta elites and Indonesians in general. Bilveer Singh | August 25, 2010 | IDSA Comments
