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For nearly a quarter of the past century a series of notable changes have taken place in the Arctic. All of them, whether political, economical, environmental or climate-related, inevitably had an impact on regional and global governance. This commentary mainly focuses on the role of China in Arctic affairs in the context of global change and global governance.

• Ye Jiang |
• November 2014 |
• Strategic Analysis

The Arctic Ocean is melting. Essentially, this means that new sea routes will open up for international navigation, and large resources, especially oil and gas, lying underneath the frozen ice will become more accessible and exploitable. Therefore, in the emerging contemporary debates concerning the Arctic, two important questions are raised: what is the legal regime that applies to navigation in new shipping routes that will open up with the melting of Arctic ice and what is the legal regime that governs the exploitation of the vast oil and gas resources?

• H.P. Rajan |
• November 2014 |
• Strategic Analysis

This Brief analyses industry demands and reviews existing regulations in IT and defence procurement markets, culminating with suggestions on a possible way forward for reforms that can avoid adverse implications of industry demands, particularly in view of their potential conflict with important policies fostering indigenisation.

• Sandeep Verma |
• October 31, 2014 |
• Issue Brief

The US sees the establishment of the AIIB as an attempt by China to pull South- East Asian countries closer to its orbit and a soft-power play that promises economic benefits while refurbishing its image among its Asian neighbours.

• R. S. Kalha |
• October 31, 2014 |
• IDSA Comments

The emergence of India as an Asian great power in line with its economic development in recent years is a matter of significant strategic interest regionally and globally. India’s unique position as the world’s most populous democracy, with its diverse societal mix combined with its central geostrategic position, places it at the core of Asian and Indo-Pacific Ocean economic and strategic considerations.

• Lee Cordner |
• October 2014 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

There is no single agency in MoD to deal with these issues holistically. Generally, matters related to administrative powers are processed separately for each service by the administrative wings concerned with little concern for commonality.

• Amit Cowshish |
• October 27, 2014 |
• IDSA Comments

In the run-up to the voting on the budget, detailed demands for grant(DDGs) presented by various ministries to the Parliament are examinedby the departmentally-related standing committees. As Parliamentcannot possibly examine more than 100 DDGs presented to it everyyear, these committees are required to examine them in detail and reportback to the Parliament. One such committee is the Standing Committeeon Defence.

• Amit Cowshish |
• October 2014 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

The last decade has witnessed unprecedented developments in the discovery of novel materials and their radically different properties at nano scales. Global efforts in research and development (R&D)in nanotechnology are being undertaken by many countries due to far-reaching benefits encompassing the entire arena of science and technology. The field of defence is likely to profit immensely by nanotechnology-enabled applications.

• Sanjiv Tomar |
• October 2014 |
• Journal of Defence Studies

There is no single factor cited for motivating Central Asians to join ISIS ranks. However, the search for employment and earnings remain the main driver. More than 4 million migrants (Uzbeks, Tajiks and Kyrgyz) engaged in low-paid jobs in Russia are vulnerable to the jihadi network.

• P. Stobdan |
• October 22, 2014 |
• Issue Brief

Widespread problems have made the operating environment ‘dysfunctional and inefficient’. Some of this is on account of inscrutable issues like ‘integration of the services with the MoD’ or ‘civil-military relations’ but, in large part, the immediate problem lies with MoD’s inability to resolve more mundane issues.

• Amit Cowshish |
• October 21, 2014 |
• IDSA Comments