Publication Filter – Page 263

Strengthening Ties with Africa

As Modi speeds up engagement with African countries, there is an important challenge that he faces within the country, namely, making African nationals feel welcome in India.

Ruchita Beri |
July 05, 2016 |
IDSA Comments

India in Japan’s Geo-strategic Outlook

Japan’s long-standing alliance with the US is the key feature of its defence and security policy. However, China’s rise and impact on shaping the regional security architecture, and the vigour of US commitment in the backdrop of a G2 formulation, is making Japan diversify her options. Thus, India now features in the Japanese idea of Asia while it struggles to cope with the fluidity of the regional security landscape. This article critically analyses the increasing space accorded to India and the variables behind Japan’s courtship of it.

Bose, beyond the ‘Mystery’

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose has featured prominently in the news—and hence the public consciousness—only from time to time. As was often the case earlier, the recent prominence he has been given has been confined largely to the classified files concerning him and the mystery surrounding his death—reported or real. Although public and media activism can be credited for the pressure built up which led to the partial declassification of files, it is time now to go beyond these limited aspects of the life and times of a personality as great as that of Bose.

Why India matters, by Maya Chadda

Few issues have drawn as much attention and have been debated as intensely as the rise of India. There has been a plethora of literature that almost dissects various factors that have contributed to India’s rise and what the future holds for the country. Will India emerge as a major player in the international system? Will it be able to compete with a rising China as an Asian power? These are some of the questions that have confronted scholars of international relations and security.

The Dalai Lama and Tibet’s Future

In an ominous way the Dalai Lama recently threatened to terminate the over 400-year-old spiritual lineage of his position, saying that Tibetans no longer require the authority of the Dalai Lama and it would be a shame if a ‘weak’ person succeeded him.

In 2011, he also gave up his political authority in favour of an elected leader among Tibetans living in exile. Seemingly, the motive for these measures was to forestall any alternative plan by Beijing to appoint a successor after him and challenge the authority of such an appointment if Beijing does so.

India’s relations with Indonesia, by Navrekha Sharma and Baladas Ghoshal

The process of active collaboration between the practitioner and the scholar can sometimes result in desirable policy outcomes. The book under review is one such commendable initial attempt. Ambassador Navrekha Sharma retired from the Indian Foreign Service (IFS); her assignments included Joint Secretary (JS) South (1999–2001) and Ambassadorial posting to the Philippines and Indonesia. In fact, she had two postings in Jakarta, first as Minister-Counsellor (1993–1996) and later as Ambassador (2006–2008).

Prisoners of geography: ten maps that explain everything about the world, by Tim Marshall

Maps, world atlases, and travel books have always been invaluable sources of geographic knowledge. These sources, and their pedagogical significance, are a powerful tool used by geopolitical actors to control territories, peoples, and discourses. Thus, world leaders, even leaders of weak nations, are acutely aware of their geography’s importance. This is crucial in the assessment of a state’s geopolitical strengths and weaknesses in relation to its national progress and survival.

The Decision to Intervene: First Steps in India’s Grand Strategy in the 1971 War

One of the most popular anecdotes of the 1971 war is Field Marshal Manekshaw’s tale of how he restrained an impatient Indira Gandhi from ordering an unprepared Indian army to march into East Pakistan in April. The Field Marshal’s prowess as a raconteur fully matched his military skills but exceeded his grasp of the political and diplomatic dimensions of the grand strategy shaped by Indira Gandhi and her advisors.

The Role of India and China in South Asia

India is often perceived as a regional power, but a closer look reveals that it is in a disadvantageous position vis-à-vis China in South Asia. The first reason is that Indian governments never had the political, economic, and military capacities to pursue their regional power ambitions with their neighbours in the long run. South Asian countries could always play the China card in order to evade India’s influence. Second, India’s new South Asia policy with the focus on trade and connectivity has improved regional cooperation since 1991.

The International Community’s Intervention during the Conclusion of the War in Sri Lanka

This article explores the backdrop of the engagement between the International Community (IC) and the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) over the conduct of the military during the last stages of its engagement with the secessionist Tamil militants which (especially from January to May 2009) led to a humanitarian crisis. The efforts of the IC to persuade the GoSL to halt the military operations and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to concede defeat, to ensure human security, were a failure.