Book review
Brigadier (Dr) M. P. Singh (Retd), Political Leadership and Indian Armed Forces in Diplomacy and War, Greenfields Publishers, Dehradun, 2019, 351 pp., Rs.1,095.00 (hardcover), ISBN 9789381089392
India has been importing oil from the US to diversify away from the Middle Eastern Crudes. However, the weak oil demand, with attendant supply glut and contest for market share are reshaping global energy politics. This article examines the extent to which increasing oil imports from the US would be conducive for India's energy needs and the possible trade-off for the Indian refineries.
Iran—US relations are in a state of flux due to President Trump’s draconian sanctions, what is dubbed the ‘maximum pressure’ campaign, to force Iran to renegotiate the 2015 nuclear deal. Iran’s ‘counter pressure’ policy, in contrast, has sought to blunt the effects of sanctions and compel the Trump administration to return to the nuclear deal. This article examines the basic thrust, goals and shortcomings of Trump’s anti-Iran campaign, and also explores Iran’s policy choices and responses to face off Trump’s campaign of ‘maximum pressure’.
Post-COVID, the renewed emphasis on indigenisation in India calls for a fresh, in-depth examination of the entire range of issues and policies pertaining to the development of a capable domestic base for the defence industry and technology.
What led to the Sino-Indian militarized confrontations in 1959? I argue that Hindi-Chini Bhai-Bhai became a victim of changed perceptions in China. As long as China’s external and internal environment was relatively secure, India was seen as a potential ally, and Sino-Indian relations thrived. As external and internal pressures on China mounted, India’s behaviour vis-à-vis the Dalai Lama’s flight from China and the territorial dispute was perceived by China as reactionary.
