Publication

The author recounts his memories of the US military base at Manas International Airport in Bishkek, which was the hub for onward movement of about 15,000 troops and 500 tons of cargo a month to and from Afghanistan. The folding of the US base has not only put an end to the US-Central Asia saga but in effect the US overseas military presence is now retracted to the line of its power limits in Europe.

• P. Stobdan |
• July 07, 2014 |
• IDSA Comments

On 3rd July 1914 nearly a hundred years ago at Simla, Tibet and India signed the Simla Convention that gave birth to the McMahon Line separating Tibet from India in the eastern sector. Much is made by some that the Simla Convention was not a legal document but from the time of the Convention till 23rd January 1959, the Chinese government never officially, in any document, ever challenged the McMahon Line.

• R. S. Kalha |
• July 03, 2014 |
• IDSA Comments

The Defence Minister made two significant points: one, the need for making a significant amount of the nation’s resources available for defence and two, he talked about the slow pace of acquisition of defence equipment as the key concern. These are unexceptional statements of intent and the challenge would be to meet these objectives.

• Amit Cowshish |
• July 01, 2014 |
• IDSA Comments

There is no one nationalist Sri Lankan view. Among the Sinhalas, there are also the liberals who are quite realistic about their assessments and would argue that there may be a change in leadership in India, but the cornerstone of India’s policy vis-à-vis Sri Lanka will remain the same. The Tamils, on the other hand, are unanimous in their view that India can and should play a major role in bringing meaningful political reconciliation to the country.

• Gulbin Sultana |
• July 01, 2014 |
• IDSA Comments

Feroz Hassan Khan’s credentials are high considering that he served with the Pakistan army for 32 years with his last assignment as director of arms control and disarmament affairs in the Strategic Plans Division (SPD), the secretariat of Pakistan’s National Command Authority (NCA). The book under review was not an easy venture, as the author observes: ‘new nuclear states such as India, Israel and Pakistan perforce keep their nuclear programmes opaque to avoid international non-proliferation pressures’ (p. ix).

• Gautam Sen |
• July 2014 |
• Strategic Analysis

The epistemology of maritime strategic thought is a subject of growing interest and discussion among maritime analysts today. In a world where national interest is increasingly defined by maritime connectivity and overseas influence, nations have been investing considerable military and diplomatic energy in developing a nautical blueprint for future growth. Forging a comprehensive maritime strategy has, however, not been easy as strategic thinking on maritime issues has swung erratically between a rapidly evolving present and a sharply unpredictable future.

• Abhijit Singh |
• July 2014 |
• Strategic Analysis

Cultural dynamics play an important role in shaping foreign and security policies of nations. This book, a collection of 15 essays, research articles and notes presented at a seminar by Indian and foreign scholars, explores the variety of cultural connections that have operated in the Asian geo-strategic landscape for centuries. The key point made in the book is that the influence of cultural connections on hard core policy formulation often goes unappreciated and needs to be studied systematically for a better and nuanced understanding of strategies.

• Arvind Gupta |
• July 2014 |
• Strategic Analysis

The World through Arab Eyes is a 20-year project based on 10 years of actual public opinion polling in the Arab world by the author. It offers an insightful counterpoint to the dominant literature on the Arab world through its recognition of the value of the public even as power is concentrated among a narrow elite. Scholars and political commentators often discount the power of opinion as it lacks the fundamental push required to make systemic changes.

• Melissa Cyrill |
• July 2014 |
• Strategic Analysis

Recent literature on the geopolitical consequences of Arctic climate change has been significantly advanced by Marlene Laruelle’s Russia’s Arctic Strategies and the Future of the Far North. In many respects, it is a book whose time has come. Since the Arctic re-emerged on the global stage following record low sea ice extent in 2007, there has been a succession of rapid-fire publications on the politics of Arctic climate change. Most have lacked the depth, perspective and interdisciplinary approach required to understand the region.

• Lincoln E. Flake |
• July 2014 |
• Strategic Analysis

This review essay examines the significance of India–China relations against the background of the current phenomenon of a multipolar world in the light of four recent publications on the subject. Tien-sze Fang’s and Jeff M. Smith’s works discuss the current facets of India–China relations, while William Antholis’s and Carl J. Dahlman’s works deal with the character and standing that India and China bring to their regional and global discourse.

• Jagannath P. Panda |
• July 2014 |
• Strategic Analysis