Sri Lanka and the Defeat of the LTTE by K.M. de Silva The story of post-colonial Sri Lanka is, in large part, the story of how two groups have interlaced and, in the process, engaged in a 30-year war which saw its end in 2009. In Sri Lanka and the Defeat of the LTTE, K.M. de Silva addresses the history of ethnic tension in Sri Lanka, and presents a case study of the emergence, maturation and eventual collapse of the terrorist organisation the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Thiruni Kelegama | May 2013 | Strategic Analysis
Return of a King by William Dalrymple Imperialism never gives on its own will. The all-season historian, William Dalrymple, echoes this message throughout Return of a King. In comparison to his unwavering research on India, which is submerged in the thickness of the complex historiography, this new book is a rattling good read. The theme of the book gives the average reader a valid reason to come across the parts of ‘research and reference’, which are supported by historical facts rather than facts interwoven with fiction. Atul K. Thakur | May 2013 | Strategic Analysis
India: A Sacred Geography by Diana L. Eck : Harmony, Random House, New York, 2012, 559 pp., Rs 599, ISBN 978-0-385-34708-2 India: A Sacred Geography by Diana L. Eck is an important contribution to the literature on the processes that have contributed to imagining India long before the age of the nation state. Eck traces the ‘prehistory’ of the idea of India, locating it in the geographical nature of Hindu spiritual practice and pilgrimage. Kalathmika Natarajan | May 2013 | Strategic Analysis
Partition of History in Textbooks in Pakistan: Implications of Selective Memory and Forgetting This article seeks to study the post-partition and especially post-1971 experimentation with history writing in Pakistan and focuses on how the revisiting of the partition has led to a reinvention of history by the selective contraction, misinterpretation and even omission of certain periods believed to be detrimental to the process of nation building in Pakistan. The article seeks to selectively apply the Hegelian approach and make a case for a common history, which it is hoped will facilitate better relations and greater mutual understanding between the nations of the sub-continent. Ashok K. Behuria , Mohammad Shehzad | May 2013 | Strategic Analysis
Impact of West Bengal Politics on India–Bangladesh Relations It was expected that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Dhaka in September 2011 would transform India–Bangladesh relations. However, this did not happen as India could not sign the Teesta water sharing agreement, the biggest deliverable of the visit. It also made some people brand West Bengal (Paschimbanga) Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee as a spoiler. Anand Kumar | May 2013 | Strategic Analysis
India’s Nuclear Limbo and the Fatalism of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Regime, 1974–1983 India's relationship with the nuclear non-proliferation regime deteriorated sharply after its 1974 underground nuclear test which, according to India, was a peaceful nuclear explosion, but which was not accepted as such by the regime. That it did not follow up with immediate weaponisation challenged the core logic of the non-proliferation regime which operates on a Murphy's Law of ‘nuclear fatalism’, i.e. if a country has the know-how to produce nuclear weapons, it will certainly produce them. Jayita Sarkar | May 2013 | Strategic Analysis
Energy Strategy for the Indian Navy: Need, Scope and a Roadmap ‘Energy’ is a key enabler of military combat power and it should be considered a strategic resource for the Indian Navy (IN). This article justifies the necessity of ensuring energy security for the IN in the backdrop of emerging energy challenges. It also discusses certain recent developments that point to the growing relevance of an energy policy for the IN. The article then discusses the contours and the scope of an integrated energy policy and proposes a roadmap for implementing an energy strategy for the IN. Kapil Narula | May 2013 | Strategic Analysis
Lessons from Somdurong Chu Incident Incursions and incidents of escalation are not new to India-China relations. Importantly they have been successfully diffused by a combination of adroit diplomacy, ‘show of force’ and political statesmanship. Mandip Singh | April 26, 2013 | IDSA Comments
China’s Defence White Paper 2013: Lessons for India Struggling to deal with a rigid China on the intractable border issue, India would do well to digest the core assertions of the white paper, including the growing reach of the PLA, its professionalisation, keenness to protect overseas interests, modernisation of the nuclear arsenal, and growing role in foreign policy making. Arvind Gupta | April 25, 2013 | IDSA Comments
The Korean Imbroglio North Korea’s uranium enrichment programme has made the US jittery and is not totally confident of reopening the six-party talks. Washington needs assurances regarding North Korea’s future nuclear programmes and the key to finding a solution to the present stalemate lies with Beijing. R. S. Kalha | April 25, 2013 | IDSA Comments
