Future of India–Nepal Relations: Is China a Factor? Nepal shares an open border of 1,868 km with five Indian states (Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Sikkim) and 1,415 km with Tibet. Under the 1950 Treaty of Peace and Friendship with India, Nepali citizens enjoy ‘national’ treatment and Nepali businesses unhindered rights of trade, transit and movement. An estimated six million Nepalese live and work in India and contribute to their inward remittances. Social intercourse along the Gangetic plane is described by people as ‘roti-beti ka sambandh’ (a relationship based on sharing of hearth and marriage). Arun Kumar Sahu March 2015 Strategic Analysis
Chronicling the India–China Puzzle China and India are the emerging economies in Asia and are in close geographical proximity to each other. What makes this relationship complicated is the fact that India and China have a disputed boundary and even though the relationship can be regarded as smooth historically, post-1962 the situation took a turn for worse. Gunjan Singh March 2015 Strategic Analysis
India’s Military Conflicts and Diplomacy: An Inside View of Decision Making by General V.P. Malik India’s 11th Five Year Defence Plan was completed on March 31, 2012. Throughout its currency, the plan did not receive the approval of the Union Cabinet. The ongoing 12th Defence Plan was ‘approved in principle’ by the Defence Acquisition Council of the Ministry of Defence (MoD), but has not yet been approved by the National Security Council (NSC). Also, approval without financial commitment for the full five-year term is meaningless and defence planning in India remains as ad hoc as it has been since independence. Gurmeet Kanwal March 2015 Strategic Analysis
Bargaining on Nuclear Tests: Washington and Its Cold War Deals by Or Rabinowitz In Bargaining on Nuclear Tests, Rabinowitz examines aspects relating to the US entering into informal deals with Israel, South Africa and Pakistan in order to prevent them from testing nuclear weapons. These informal understandings turned a ‘blind eye’ to these countries’ nuclear quests as long as they did not test. The testing of nuclear weapons was seen as overtly harming American non-proliferation goals and potentially embarrassing the US administrations, given that these were America’s Cold War allies. S. Samuel C. Rajiv March 2015 Strategic Analysis
The Return of Geopolitics in Europe? Social Mechanisms and Foreign Policy Identity Crises by Stefano Guzzini (ed.) The end of the Cold War was one of the defining moments in Europe’s geopolitical history. The ‘frozen spatiality’ that dominated the geopolitical space of Europe for half a century came undone. The emergence of a new spatial reality brought with it a novelty of issues that had to be dealt with by strategic and political elites and their appendages (academia and media). Their interpretation of the end of the Cold War, and the choices they made, were critical in the evolution of a particular type of geopolitical thought and foreign policy discourse. Nachiket Khadkiwala March 2015 Strategic Analysis
Does the Elephant Dance? Contemporary Indian Foreign Policy by David M. Malone In Does the Elephant Dance, David Malone identifies various aspects of Indian history relevant to foreign policy by examining the role of domestic politics and internal and external security challenges. The author specifically analyses domestic and international economic factors. In several chapters, he evaluates India’s policy towards its South Asian neighbours as well as explaining its multilateral diplomacy with respect to China, the US, West Asia, East Asia (India’s ‘Look East’ policy), Europe and Russia. Uma Nabhi March 2015 Strategic Analysis
Defence Budget 2015 -16: The Writing on the Wall It is a fairly simple exercise to estimate what the defence budget will be given available indicators. My assessment is that the Budget Estimate for defence is likely to be around Rs. 250,000 crore, with 105,000 crore for Capital Expenditure and 145,000 Crore for Revenue Expenditure. Vinay Kaushal February 27, 2015 IDSA Comments
India’s Non-Policy on Pakistan: U-Turn to Square One The thumb rule in making a policy U-turn is “minimise damage or maximise advantage”. What is extraordinary about the Modi government’s U-turn is that it maximises losses and minimises advantages. Sushant Sareen February 26, 2015 IDSA Comments
India and the Convention on Supplementary Compensation There is a general feeling among analysts that while US government lawyers may have been satisfied that the CLNDA is compatible with CSC in light of explanations offered by the Indian government, this view is being reportedly challenged by nuclear industry lawyers. G. Balachandran February 19, 2015 Issue Brief
Yaalon’s Visit and the India-Israel Defence Relationship The Modi’s government determination to adopt a muscular stance on national security and its commitment to expedite defence modernisation are likely to translate into greater political and defence engagement with Israel. S. Samuel C. Rajiv February 19, 2015 IDSA Comments
