Publication Filter

Settling differences with China

A re-look of the intentions of the Chinese is important because according to long-term economic trends around 2030 Asia will be the world’s powerhouse just as it was prior to 1800. China is expected to surpass the US by 2016 to become the largest economy, and India’s GDP is expected to exceed that of the US by 2060.

The future of India-Bangladesh ties

Amid claims and counter claims, it can not be denied that unabated influx from Bangladesh into the North Eastern states has reached alarming proportion. It is essential that India convey strongly its concerns to Bangladesh.

Lessons from a tragedy: Case of MH 370

There is quite clearly reluctance all around to sharing data or at least in negating the sighting of the airliner on the radar by countries in the region for security concerns as well as the lack of a centralised regional command and control centre for coordinating and monitoring the operations.

European Union-Brazil Strategic Partnership

The diplomatic relations between European Union and Brazil were established during the 1960. Three aspects largely determine EU-Brazil relations: bilateral aspect, the EU-Mercosur aspect and increasingly after the financial crises the aspect of global economic governance.

Sun Zi and Kautilya: Towards a Comparative Analysis

It may be stated at the outset that this essay is essentially an attempt to identify some critical commonalities in the approaches of Sun Zi and Kautilya, the two profound strategists of the ancient Orient, one belonging to China and the other to India, and who exercised considerable influence for centuries that followed in their respective countries.

No One’s World: The West, the Rising Rest, and the Coming Global Turn by Charles A. Kupchan

Europe and the US have together dominated the world for over 200 years and have shaped the nature of the modern international order through their power and ideas. But they are losing their material primacy and ideological dominance with the rise of new powers, or the ‘rest’, such as China, India, Brazil, Russia and Turkey in the 21st century. The shift of global power from the West to the rest will transform International Relations (IR) and the emerging world order.

The Dispensable Nation: American Foreign Policy in Retreat by Vali Nasr

The Dispensable Nation provides a useful critique of the Obama administration. The author, Vali Nasr, analyses Obama’s foreign policy, especially his approach towards regions afflicted by crises, from the volatile Arab region to the badlands of South Asia. The book sheds light on the tussle between the State Department and the White House which impacts the making as well as the implementation of US foreign policy.

Facing the Taliban: Experiences of a UN Woman Aid Worker in Taliban Controlled Afghanistan by Anoja Wijeyesekera

This book is based on the four years that Anoja Wijeyesekera, the author, spent in Afghanistan as a UNICEF official (November 1997–September 12, 2001) before she and other UNICEF staff were evacuated from Kabul after the 9/11 terror attacks. The book describes not only the experiences of a ‘UN female aid worker’ in Afghanistan in particular, but also the conditions for women under the Taliban in general.

Apocalypse Pakistan: An Anatomy of ‘the World’s Most Dangerous Nation’ by Francesca Marino and Beniamino Natale

The current state of Pakistan is messy and full of existential contradictions. The nation was built on a separate Muslim identity and on the pretext that in independent and integrated India the status of minorities would not be equal with Hindus. This notion was proved wrong as early as the 1950s, when political discourse in Pakistan turned more strongly towards religion than democratic principles. Consequently, Pakistan has become a safe haven for religious fundamentalists who trade in deadly violence and pose a threat to peace in the South Asian region.

Troubling Tehran: Reflections on Geopolitics by Arun Vishwanathan and Rajaram Nagappa (Eds.)

The ever dynamic nuclear conundrum of Iran has continued to hog the limelight. Numerous suggestions emanating from varied quarters about how to manage the issue have dominated the ongoing international discourse. However, there is no unanimity on how to cope with the current situation and the impending future.