The Maldives presidential runoff election has been postponed indefinitely further widening the political dispute. The uncertainty highlights the challenges the young democracy faces, having held its first-ever multiparty election in 2008.

• Anand Kumar |
• September 25, 2013 |
• IDSA Comments

Gestures for peace talks in Manipur by the government indicate a willingness to engage in dialogue with armed groups, which in itself is a step towards reconciliation. Equally important is to ensure that these gestures are seen as a genuine desire to engage with the real issues.

• Namrata Goswami |
• September 23, 2013 |
• IDSA Comments

Transforming the India-Nepal border from an ‘open border’ to a ‘closed border’ would severely damage the traditional socio-cultural and economic ties. It would be prudent to keep the border open but manage it more effectively through mutual cooperation.

• Pushpita Das |
• September 19, 2013 |
• IDSA Comments

The Urban Movement has a defined role in the political strategy and military strategy of the CPI (Maoist). The Maoists envisage that they would mobilise and organise the industrial workers.

• P. V. Ramana |
• September 13, 2013 |
• IDSA Comments

The emerging doctrine of intervention is built around the ability of the international community, mainly the US-led western alliance, to impose its collective will in order to restore a deteriorating situation or to prevent a nascent conflict from burgeoning into full blown war with wider ramifications.

• Gurmeet Kanwal |
• September 13, 2013 |
• IDSA Comments

Creation of new states is likely to undermine India’s polity and governance and consequently the socio-economic progress. Cost-benefit analysis suggests that only in some respects the newly-created states have performed better.

• Gautam Sen |
• September 12, 2013 |
• IDSA Comments

The transitional politics in the Himalayan Kingdom has entered choppy waters with the breakaway radical faction of the Maoist party vowing to disrupt the election to a new constituent assembly slated in November this year.

• Post Bahadur Basnet |
• September 09, 2013 |
• IDSA Comments

New energy find in West Asia will set forth new political equations. Syria alone has discovered huge proven gas, oil and shale reserves. Whether the Assad regime survives or a change of regime happens there would determine the global gas system in a large way.

• Gulshan Dietl |
• September 09, 2013 |
• IDSA Comments

It is not so much because of the use of chemical weapons that will unleash US fire-power, but the fact that the Assad regime might be winning the civil war in conjunction with its Iranian and Hezbollah allies.

• R. S. Kalha |
• September 04, 2013 |
• IDSA Comments

Joint military exercises hold strategic relevance but India must consider seriously that despite the Annual Defence Dialogue mechanism and joint training exercises, incursions in the border regions have increased over the years.

• Jagannath P. Panda |
• September 02, 2013 |
• IDSA Comments