The South East Asia and Oceania Centre focuses on policy-relevant research with respect to the ten ASEAN states, East Timor and Oceania, including Australia and New Zealand. The Centre studies India’s bilateral and multilateral relations with states of the region with a view to providing contemporary relevance to India’s Look East policy. It has a futuristic-looking approach and examines the emerging trends in the regional security architecture. The Centre studies the potential for India’s enhanced defence cooperation (including maritime issues) and cooperation in non-traditional security issues with the region. It examines internal developments of countries in this region, especially political transitions and the role of the military, and their implications for India. The Centre seeks to promote Track-II institutional linkages with the region. Southeast Asia & Oceania Centre brings out a monthly newsletter – Insight Southeast Asia.
This book offers wide ranging divergent perspectives on India's role in managing and shaping Asian Security. The book offers important ideas on how Asian security will shape up in the future by utilizing the method of scenarios. It is an important contribution to the field of Asian and regional security and India's role in it.
This volume is based on the proceedings of Delhi Dialogue VII held in March 2015. It epitomizes the growing dialogue between India and ASEAN at all levels. Delhi Dialogue brings together practitioners, corporate leaders, opinion makers, academics and journalists, every year, to discuss a wide range of issues of common interest and concern that animate the India - ASEAN relationship. Discussions held at the Delhi Dialogue, subsequent to ASEAN Commemorative Summit issuing the ‘Vision Statement’ in 2012, provide a good insight into the likely scenarios and possible trends in the post-2015 era.
This volume is based on the proceedings of Delhi Dialogue VI held in March 2014. It epitomizes the growing dialogue between India and ASEAN at all levels. Delhi Dialogue brings together practitioners, corporate leaders, opinion makers, academics and journalists, every year, to discuss a wide range of issues of common interest and concern that animate India - ASEAN relationship . Discussions held at the Delhi Dialogue, subsequent to ASEAN Commemorative issuing the ‘Vision Statement’ in 2012, provide a good insight into the likely scenarios and possible trends in the post-2015 era.
The 21st century has been described as the ‘Asian Century.’ Home to 60 per cent of the world’s population and accounting for one-fourth of its Gross Domestic Product, by 2050, Asia will also have three of the world’s largest economies—China, India, and Japan. A dynamic hub in this rising Asia is the Southeast Asian region—encompassing diverse countries, peoples and cultures. The 9th Asian Security Conference addressed a range of issues and trends affecting this crucial region and their implications for regional and Asian security.
Prior to 1995 when Vietnam joined ASEAN and normalized relationship with the United States, the overriding concern was security as could be well explained by realism. Vietnam has made several critical, strategic moves since 1995 and by 2030 the country may be able to act internationally as an emerging middle power.
The question of autonomy or self-determination in Myanmar goes back to the country’s pre-independence era. It is an important historical issue which unified and divided the country. The idea of forming a union government that would grant equal status to all citizens brought together different ethnic groups at the Panglong conference in 1947. However, the country’s conflicts remain and efforts are on to address the decades-old problems. One possible solution widely discussed is federalism.
Being highly porous, poorly guarded and located along a remote, underdeveloped, insurgency-prone region and proximate to one of the world’s largest five opium producing areas, the India–Myanmar border is vulnerable to the activities of insurgents and drugs and arms traffickers as well as criminals. Although the Indian government has been alive to the threats that emanate from a poorly guarded India–Myanmar international border, its attention towards the problem has been woefully inadequate.
This article examines how regime types shape security sector reforms, that are integral to the peace processes in Thailand’s Patani and the Philippines’ Mindanao.
Australia has remained insulated from mega terrorist attacks, but post-September 11 its involvement in the war on terror in Afghanistan, Iraq and against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has brought terrorism into its backyard. In the wake of these emerging threats, particularly home-grown terrorism (HGT), successive governments have introduced changes in the counter-terrorism (CT) laws, and expanded the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Commonwealth-Cth) at the recommendations of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG).
The world is witnessing a geopolitical shift from the North Atlantic to the Indo–Pacific region. US power is in relative decline with a steady build-up of Chinese power, wealth and influence. The last 15–20 years have also seen the rise of India. Against this backdrop, Australia’s reconceptualisation of its strategic frame as the Indo–Pacific widens its geopolitical canvas and elevates India’s importance for multiple Australian interests and objectives.
This article analyses two security challenges facing the Royal Cambodian Government (RGC) and the Cambodian Defence Organization at the strategic level for the next decade. The first obvious challenge relates to the stalemated territorial dispute along the Cambodia–Thailand border, particularly the question of ownership of the Preah Vihear (called PhraViharn in Thailand) temple and its surrounding area since October 2008.
Southeast Asia’s international shipping lanes (ISL) are essential to the economic security of the Asia-Pacific region. Maintaining good order at sea serves to protect regional trade and can be achieved through collaboration between civil maritime security agencies (coast guards). Japan and China both have significant coast guard capabilities and diplomatic influence in the region that could be harnessed to promote civil maritime security cooperation with the countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The many links between drugs, small arms and insurgency have been widely discussed and addressed by scholars. The literature in particular has convincingly shown how several insurgent groups in Myanmar have used the drug business to finance and sustain their violent movements. Funds generated from drug production and circulation help the insurgent groups to procure arms, and are widely believed to be supporting the protracted nature of these movements.
Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) won by a landslide majority in the openly contested elections Myanmar held on Sunday, November 8, 2015.The NLD won a convincing majority with 255 seats in the lower house, 135 in the upper house and 496 seats in the state and regional legislatures. This paves the way for election of President of its choice and forming a government. The election had 33.5 million eligible voters (over 18 years) of Myanmar’s 52 million population.
Australia has a vital interest in preventing the Indian Ocean Region from becoming an arena of great power rivalry, including between India and China. The 2013 Defence White Paper clearly delineates the Indo-Pacific as an area of supreme importance to Australia. Developing a close strategic partnership with India is an important part of this strategy.
Maritime security in the Indo-Pacific (or the Indian Ocean–Pacific Ocean continuum) has acquired salience following the shift of the centre of gravity from the Atlantic. It has brought the focus onto the trade, resources and energy lifelines that run across it. The emerging power equations marked by an assertive China, a rising India, a resurgent Japan, together with a rebalancing United States make for a potentially turbulent region.
Problems common to many Asian states suggest a pattern of crisis in Asia. The evidence suggests that the root cause is the similarity in the patterns of political development of postcolonial states. In Asia such states have attempted to reconcile state strength and internal diversity by constructing a triangular balance between identity construction, hegemonic governance and economic development. Unfortunately, this fragile balance eroded as state structures matured and economies grew, which increasingly exposed countries to escalating crises of legitimacy and instability.
The objective of this article is to discuss defence cooperation between Malaysia and India in the post-Cold War era (1991–2012), mainly from Malaysia’s perspective. The article is divided into four parts. First, the historical background of Malaysia–India defence cooperation during the colonial period until the Cold War is discussed briefly. Second, defence cooperation in the post-Cold War period involving the three services (air force, navy and army) is examined. Third, certain issues in Malaysia–India defence cooperation are analysed.
More than 16 years have passed since the government and the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah faction, or NSCN(IM))
Regionalism has been an important force in international relations since 1945. The aim of this article is to make an assessment of one of the major regional organisations from the Asia Pacific, the ASEAN, or Association of South East Asian Nations. The article attempts to give readers an overview of the problems and prospects of the ASEAN. Although the ASEAN has been successful to a large extent as a regional body, regionalism in South East Asia has been considerably undermined by a number of factors since its creation in 1967.
Burma’s two decades-old alignment with China, which was always an uneasy one, is being reordered to better reflect Burmese national interests. In an attempt to reach out to the West, partial democratisation has been permitted. The military remains highly influential in Burmese politics, but its desire to avoid the pitfalls of over-dependence on Beijing, together with confidence that separatist movements pose a lesser threat than in the past, have led to a loosening of political control.
INS Sudarshini, India’s Sail Training Ship (STS), was sent on a commemorative expedition to the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) member countries for six months along the monsoon trade winds route to trace India’s civilisational and cultural affinities and rejuvenate trade and maritime linkages with its neighbours in the East. The voyage was part of the commemoration of the successful completion of two decades of India’s Look East Policy, 20 years of dialogue relations with ASEAN, and 10 years of India–ASEAN summit-level partnership.
The article analyses US–Burma relations under two different US administrations. Since the failed 1988 democracy uprising in Burma, the United States of America and the Union of Burma have had a strained relationship. This resulted in the US government's downgrading of its representative from ambassador to chargé d'affaires. The Republican administration of President George W. Bush pursued an isolationist policy by imposing sanctions on Burma from 2001 to 2009. When President Barack H.
The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) is a body set up under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to deal with disputes that emerge because of a difference in the interpretation and application of the convention. 1 Bangladesh has had an ongoing maritime boundary dispute with India and Myanmar since 1974. On 14 March 2012, the ITLOS delivered a verdict and ended the long-running maritime boundary dispute between Bangladesh and Myanmar.
After 67 years of diplomatic relations and two decades of collaboration in connecting India with Southeast Asia in January of 2012, Thailand and India finally signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Defence Cooperation. This effort to deepen defence and military ties between the two countries emerged relatively late when compared with those between India and most other Southeast Asian countries.
This Occasional Paper is a brief first-hand personal account of the Tevents, discussions, decisions and the action taken in November 1988 by the Government of India to provide help to the Government of Maldives to quell an attempted coup.
ASEAN’s recent initiatives towards the Indo-Pacific help cement its centrality further while maintaining the grouping’s autonomy.
Southeast Asian nations’ responses to the ongoing violent conflict between Israel and Hamas are influenced by historical, domestic, demographic and strategic factors.
The intensification of China’s hard-line territorial claims in the East and South China Seas, matched by its unilateral actions, are threatening regional peace and stability.
थाईलैंड में लोकप्रिय लोकतांत्रिक मांगों के बरक्स वर्चस्वशाली शासन संरचना ।
The East Asia Summit remains critical to advancing closer regional cooperation, at a time of a rapid geo-political and geo-economic changes.
Indonesia can emulate best practices from neighbouring countries like Malaysia vis-à-vis deradicalisation programmes to further reduce recidivism rates.
The visit of Vietnamese Defence Minister General Phan Van Giang to India reflects the deepening of the partnership which has evolved as a consequence of the rapidly changing regional security dynamics.
Indonesia needs a robust policy response vis-à-vis Foreign Returned Terrorist Fighters in terms of their integration, dismantling of networks, and regular monitoring of their activities.
Tailored strategies that cater to the unique needs and aspirations of the North Eastern Region can ensure comprehensive development, regional cooperation and long-term stability.
Negotiations between ASEAN and China regarding a Code of Conduct on South China Sea may continue to be prolonged and evasive.
Anwar Ibrahim’s ascent to power could prove advantageous for dealing with Malaysia’s fractious domestic dynamics as well as for furthering the country’s foreign policy goals.
India can carve a niche as a capacity-builder in helping the southern Pacific countries meet developmental goals and tackle climate change.
The Shan state of Myanmar is the largest producer of illegal drugs within the infamous Golden Triangle—a tri-junction at the Myanmar, Laos and Thailand borders.
The Indo-Pacific Maritime Domain Awareness (IPMDA) Initiative aims to enhance regional maritime security via technology and training support.
The new Labor Party government in Australia is likely to show continuity on AUKUS and Quad initiatives in the Indo-Pacific, while policy approaches on Pacific Islands and China, as also on climate change, may get a re-look.
India and Australia need to take a leadership role in maritime security affairs in the two oceans and have deeper engagements with the Pacific and Indian Ocean island countries.
A Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between India and the Philippines would be fruitful in not only strengthening the bilateral relations between the two, but also in adding heft to the security architecture of the Indo-Pacific.
The Indo-Pacific construct has significantly enhanced the strategic salience of both India and Australia in a multipolar region. While the two nations have considerably deepened their strategic partnership, there is scope for much more improvement in several sectors.
