Journal of Defence Studies

Revisiting Nuclear India: Strategic Culture and (In) Security Imaginary, by Runa Das

Following a critical social constructivist approach, Runa Das affirms in Revisiting Nuclear India that India’s nuclear decisions are a product of the state’s strategic culture, which is generated by its ‘security community’ not only as a response to ‘real politics’ but also are articulated and re-interpreted within an ‘political-ideological-cultural space’ carved out by the discursive practices of the security community. For Das, strategic cultures are not culturally-conditioned or historically determined but socially constructed.

Countering the Threat of Radicalisation: Theories, Programmes and Challenges

In recent years, rising instances of home-grown terrorism, lone-wolf operations and growing polarisation within societies have upstaged the global military struggle against major transnational terrorist organisations. As the dissemination of radical ideas and related violence increases, over 40 governments around the world have decided to develop their own counter-radicalisation and de-radicalisation programmes, in keeping with their socio-political and cultural particularities.

Revisiting the 1965 War

The 1965 war was an unexpected one, forced on India by Pakistan. Yet, India rose as one to face the threat to her safety and integrity, and defeated the designs of Pakistan to wrest Kashmir. Fought mainly on our western border, the geopolitical ramifications of the war attracted international attention and reactions of the major world powers, mainly for ending the war. While the actual fighting stopped on 23 September1965 (there were a few actions after it also), the final curtain was drawn in January 1966 at Tashkent.

Equilibrium in Higher Defence Organisation and the Need for Restructuring

The article deals with the issue of the necessity of identifying and maintaining equilibrium between the two key constituents of the higher defence organisation (HDO) of the country, namely, the civil bureaucrats and the service officers. In India, the military and the bureaucracy share a very delicate relationship. Though the protocol issues between the various appointments have been defined by the government, there is a requirement of greater clarity in the working relationship between them.

War and State-Building in Afghanistan: Historical and Modern Perspectives, edited by Scott Gates and Kaushik Roy

War and State-Building in Afghanistan deals with one of South Asia’s most turbulent states, Afghanistan, and its socio-political and military conditions. This book also traces the processes that have shaped the geopolitics of Afghanistan. Afghanistan has been occupied by the Mughals, British, Soviets, Americans and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The book looks at their efforts at counter-insurgency (COIN) operations in the last five centuries ranging from 1520 to 2012.

1962: The War That Wasn’t, by Kunal Verma

The title of the book is self-explanatory. And the tone and tenor thereof is an implied challenge to the conventional wisdom, and thesis, propounded in India’s China War, written by British scribe Neville Maxwell in the 1970s. According to Verma, in 1949, ‘China was not a player as far as India’s national security was concerned.’ None, except Sardar Patel, could read, or anticipate, China and its plan of action. Hence, the 1962 India–China conflict is ‘least understood’. Exactly a month before his death, however, Patel wrote a warning letter to the Indian Prime Minister, Nehru.

Australia’s 2016 Defence White Paper: An Indian Perspective

Australia’s comprehensive strategic approach towards the Indo-Pacific region and a renewed interest in the Indian Ocean has served to rekindle its relationship with India. Australia’s recently released 2016 Defence White Paper (DWP 2016) demonstrates that a growing convergence in strategic approaches can be discerned as Australia looks West and India begins to ‘Act East’.

The Importance of the Spies in Ancient Indian Diplomacy

Intelligence studies is a sub-discipline of international relations though in India, the subject is yet to become part of the academic curriculum. The topic has been covered in detail in Kautilya’s Arthashastra. In ancient Indian traditions, intelligence has always been an important part of statecraft. The book under review is written in Hindi, aided with Sanskrit sutras as notes.

Kautilya’s Arthashastra: Restoring its Rightful Place in the Field of International Relations

India’s rise in the twenty-first century has resulted in renewed attention on the country, especially in the sphere of strategic thought. This focus has brought into limelight ancient India’s pioneering text on polity called Kautilya’s Arthashastra (KA).Contingent with that is a growing interest in exploring the relevance of KA in the contemporary world.

Reorganisation of Defence Outlay for 2016–17: A Tepid Affair

Beginning 2016–17, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) will present four detailed demands for grant (DDGs)1 instead of eight that it had been presenting to the Lok Sabha2 in the past. It is not that its area of responsibility has shrunk. The reason why the number of demands has come down is that the budgetary outlays earlier spread over eight demands have now been compressed into four.