Strategic Analysis

State-Building in the Steppe: Challenges to Kazakhstan’s Modernizing Aspirations

The Republic of Kazakhstan seeks to undergo modernization over the course of the next several decades and transform into one of the world’s top 30 economies. To fulfil this aim, the Kazakhstani government has designed a programme known as the ‘100 Steps’. If faithfully implemented, this package of reforms will gradually revolutionize the nature of Kazakhstani state–society relations, by remaking Kazakhstan into a more economically dynamic and politically pluralistic country.

India’s Stance and Renewed Commitment to UN Peacekeeping

The United Nations (UN) adopted UN Peacekeeping, during its initial years, to restore international peace and security. As the world body celebrated 70 years of its existence in 2015, UN Peacekeeping continues to play an important role in maintaining peace and security, by protecting civilians and preventing human rights violations arising from violence and conflict. India has emerged as one of the frontrunners in the shared responsibility of ushering in peace and stability in the world, under the umbrella of the UN.

Impact of Political Economy on Economic Strategy Making in India (1947–1991)

What has been the impact of Political Economy and ideational factors such as formative experiences of a State, ideas of strategic thinkers and history on the strategic economic choices made by nation-states? While many authors have used the political economy framework to analyse global and domestic change, it is surprising that not many scholars have adequately explored the impact of political economy and ideational factors on economic strategy making in the Indian context.

Japan’s Proactive Pacifism: Investing in Multilateralization and Omnidirectional Hedging

Since 2012, Japan’s foreign policy under Prime Minister (PM) Abe has been characterized as assertive, welcome or provocative. By employing the fear of abandonment/entrapment theory as the analytical framework, this article finds that Japan’s regional foreign policy under Abe is characterized by consolidation and investment in broad-based multilateralism, proactive engagement with partners in the region, including China, and strategic hedging.

China’s Naval Base(s) in the Indian Ocean—Signs of a Maritime Grand Strategy?

The article assesses China’s Indian Ocean strategy against the backdrop of its naval base development in Djibouti. It argues that China’s naval force posturing stems from a doctrinal shift to ocean-centric strategic thinking and is indicative of the larger gameplan of having a permanent naval presence in the Indian Ocean. China’s maritime strategy comprises four key components. First, to channel naval reinforcements for securing its maritime trade and economic interests in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR)—even as it strengthens the Maritime Silk Road initiative.

India’s look east to act east policy: tracking the opportunities and challenges in the Indo-Pacific

The 21st century is known as the Asian Century, and the Indo-Pacific is the most dynamic region of this century in terms of economics, security challenges and demographics. Against this backdrop, the book is a timely publication that focuses on the issues that are relevant to this region and analyses as well as proposes Indian policy responses to these emerging challenges. The book is divided into four themes: dynamics of India’s engagement with the Indo-Pacific region; key regional developments in the Indo-Pacific; maritime security challenges and cooperation; and conflict resolution.

India’s war: the making of modern south Asia (1939–1945)

Srinath Raghavan’s India’s War: The Making of Modern South Asia (1939–1945) is a welcome addition to his previous volumes on South Asia, in particular on Jawaharlal Nehru, India’s first Prime Minister, in War and Peace in Modern India (Palgrave Macmillan, 2010), and the struggle on the creation of Bangladesh and sub-continental historiography in 1971: A Global History of the Creation of Bangladesh (Harvard University Press, 2013). This book has captured the fundamental elements of India under British colonial rule, and the extraordinary changes that occurred during the Second World War.

India–China relations: politics of resources, identity and authority in a multipolar world order

Jagannath P. Panda’s India–China Relations: Politics of Resources, Identity and Authority in a Multipolar World Order is a welcome addition among the plethora of scholarship available on India–China relations, by bringing analysis of the bilateral relationship into the second decade of the 21st century.

Neoclassical realist theory of international politics

In the mid-1990s, Colin Elman cited a maxim horses for courses meaning ‘every horse is suited to a particular course’ to underscore the inherent weakness of neorealist theories in that they ‘cannot be used as theories of foreign policy’. In response, Kenneth Waltz had unequivocally admitted the weakness: ‘My old horse (Neorealism) cannot run the course and will lose if it tries.’ But since then, discourse in International Relations (IR) theory has entered a new phase.

Stress-Test for Chinese Restraint: China Evaluates Russia’s Use of Force

The article discusses if China will be inspired by its strategic partner Russia to use force as an instrument of its foreign policy. After a pro et con discussion the authors find that the disincentives created by the Russian example are likely to convince China that it should continue to show restraint under the ‘peaceful development’ formula, and avoid military adventures. The East Asian Peace is thus not seriously threatened, at least not by China—for now.