The Case for Employing Non-Lethal Weapons At first glance, ‘Non-Lethal’ and ‘armed forces’ do not seem to go along, considering that the primary role of the military is to preserve national interests and safeguard territorial integrity, sovereignty and unity of India against external threats. However, changes in the security dynamics have embroiled the Indian Army more and more in the secondary task of providing assistance to government agencies to cope with internal threats as part of ‘Aid to Civil Authority’ when requisitioned for the purpose. Arvind Dutta | June 03, 2009 | IDSA Comments
Profiling the Taliban Threat to India The threat from the Taliban could be in the form of heightened infiltration attempts across the Line of Control or see a new breed of Talibanised Pakistani militants targeting the Indian hinterland or a combination of both. Harinder Singh | June 02, 2009 | Issue Brief
The 2009 National Elections: Signals from the Kashmir Valley Elections in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, be they for the state legislature or Parliament, have become the symbol around which the contest for legitimacy between the separatists and mainstream political leadership takes place. The recently concluded election for six Parliamentary constituencies was no exception. In the five-phase elections that were held in the state in April-May 2009, 2,022 election rallies were held. Arpita Anant | June 02, 2009 | IDSA Comments
Brief on India’s Neighbourhood Terrorism, maritime security and border management are the key challenges in India's neighbourhood Untitled | May 28, 2009 | Policy Brief
Economic Downturn: Options for MoD The present global economic crisis has slowed down the growth of the Indian economy, affecting among others, the fiscal situation and the revenue mobilisation potential of the central government. Defence being one of the largest recipients of central government expenditure, the present crisis casts a doubt on the adequacy of future resources. This commentary discusses some major options that India’s Ministry of Defence needs to consider in order to withstand the likely resource constraints in the coming years. Laxman Kumar Behera | May 26, 2009 | IDSA Comments
The Role of Science Fiction in Strategic Thinking The recent publication and controversy over STRATFOR founder George Friedman's The Next 100 Years, with its forecasts of war and new space technology reminds us all to consider the value of science fiction to strategic thinking. Peter Garretson | May 26, 2009 | IDSA Comments
Sino-Japanese relations warming up following Aso’s Beijing Sojourn On the invitation of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso paid an official visit to China on April 29-30. This was Aso’s first official visit to China since he took office in September 2008. Aso’s visit is significant in more than one way. Being the first between leaders of the two countries in 2009, it was important as it came after a number of exchanges of high level visits in 2008. Aso’s visit was expected to advance China-Japan strategic relations further. Pranamita Baruah | May 22, 2009 | IDSA Comments
Learning the right lessons on the just concluded counter insurgency operations in Sri Lanka The death of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eeelam (LTTE) leader Prabhakran closes a chapter in the first counter insurgency success of the 21st century by military means. A greater challenge in nation building now faces the Sri Lankan people - integrating the Tamils in their society dominated by Sinhala Buddhists. Purely from a military point of view some important lessons and some areas of further inquiry emerge. In brief they are: P. K. Gautam | May 22, 2009 | IDSA Comments
Space as the Source of Our Future Energy The idea is to launch giant orbiting solar collectors into space, where there is no night, and beam the power to receivers on the ground, where it is fed as electricity to the grid. Long championed by former President Dr. Abdul Kalam, and the Aerospace Society of India (AeSI), the idea is seen as a long-term solution for energy security and climate change, and the most environmentally benign and scalable renewable energy option, which deserves its own focused development programme. Peter Garretson | May 22, 2009 | IDSA Comments
India Finishes Destruction of its CW Arsenal This destruction of CWs under the watchful eyes of international inspectors by strictly following a declared roadmap could be said to be a feather in the cap for India’s overall disarmament and arms control efforts. Ajey Lele | May 21, 2009 | IDSA Comments
