Japan’s Self-Defense Forces: A Decade after Reorganisation Japan banks heavily on her security alliance with the United States (US) to ensure availability of requisite military capability in the region. China’s economic and military capabilities have grown in the last two decades, closing the gap with the US. With diminishing differential, especially with respect to China, the US’ deterrence power has gradually declined. Under these conditions, Japan has to develop Self-Defense Forces (SDF) capabilities to ensure that it, in combination with its alliance partner, the US, is able to meet national security challenges. Kishore Kumar Khera | October-December 2018 | Journal of Defence Studies
Approach to Battle: Training the Indian Army during the Second World War, by Alan Jeffreys From entering the portals of a military academy till retirement, an officer remains deeply involved with training. From the initial days as a subaltern to, later on, assuming the responsibilities of a commanding officer who has to ensure that his unit is battle ready, the involvement with training is total. Later, in senior ranks, he is expected to put his experience to work in devising more meaningful and effective ways to train the nation’s military to be ready for the next war. Alok Deb | October-December 2018 | Journal of Defence Studies
Decoding the Expansion Plans of the United States Air Force How different will the USAF look after the proposed restructuring with 74 additional squadrons? Will there be a trade-off between quality and quantity? Kishore Kumar Khera | September 28, 2018 | IDSA Comments
Issues in Defence Costing It is important to pay greater attention to the system of costing followed by the MoD given that costing errors could result in the sanctioning of an unaffordable procurement programme, contract being awarded at a higher price, cost and time overruns, and default on contractual commitments. Amit Cowshish | September 27, 2018 | IDSA Comments
Nepal-China Transit Agreement: An Evaluation Nepal’s quest for an alternate transit country with a view to reducing its dependence on India succeeded with the finalisation of the text for the Protocol of Transit Transport Agreement with China on September 7, 2018. Nihar R. Nayak | September 27, 2018 | Issue Brief
CAATSA Sanctions and India While 11 of the 12 prescribed sanctions will have little or no effect on India-Russia defence relations, the twelfth, unless waived, has the potential to completely derail the India-US Defence and Strategic Partnership. G. Balachandran | September 26, 2018 | IDSA Comments
China Looks to Africa to Reduce Trade Dependence on the US China may or may not succeed in transforming Africa into a substitute market. If it does, the bilateral trade relationship is likely to become more unbalanced and tilted in its own favour leading to greater exploitation of Africa. Anand Kumar | September 18, 2018 | IDSA Comments
The 2018 Maldivian Presidential Elections: Two-horse Race between Development and Reforms The forthcoming presidential election is a contest between Yameen’s pledge to bring about a transformational change with mega-projects and Solih’s pledge to end presidential tyranny, injustice and corruption Gulbin Sultana | September 17, 2018 | Issue Brief
India’s Economic Opportunities in Central Asia India needs to use economic leverages more efficiently to build closer ties with Central Asia. P. Stobdan | September 17, 2018 | Policy Brief
The Arithmetic of India-U.S. Relations and the Russian Factor India, on its way to become a global power, will likely have to follow a zigzag course, balancing between American demands, long-term friendship with Russia and its own strategic necessities in the neighbourhood and beyond. Aleksei Zakharov | September 17, 2018 | IDSA Comments
