Gp Capt Ajey Lele (Retd.) is a Consultant at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, New Delhi. Click here for detailed profile.
The US is stopping the shuttle programme by design and not for want of technology or money; nor does discontinuing the space shuttle indicate that the US has lost the space race.
With the successful sixteenth flight of the PSLV-C16, the “feel good” factor has returned to ISRO which was buffeted by failures and controversy over the last year.
On the 50th anniversary of Gagarin’s space flight, the space scenario appears to be at a crossroads. Because of the economic and other geopolitical compulsions, major powers are found trading cautiously.
This article evaluates the opportunities associated with The Hague Code of Conduct (HCoC) for India. HCoC is a stand-alone agreement against ballistic missile proliferation. Since the 1974 Pokharan nuclear tests it has been tricky for India to get into the non-proliferation mainstream. The success of the 2005 Indo-US nuclear deal is a first step towards global acceptability of India's non-proliferation and disarmament policies. Now, it is important for India to start supporting the international norms which do not affect their strategic programmes.
Bringing together a pool of renowned international experts, the book deals with the potential drivers of future change in Asia like economic growth, climate change, demographics, urbanisation, migration, resource competition, technology, military modernisation, globalisation, nationalism and identity politics, radical movements, extremism and terrorism, and great power competition.
In recent years, Iran has come to acquire a significant place in the West Asian region with the ability to influence regional politics. For India, relations with Iran are vital. In the changed strategic environment, both India and Iran have been working towards improving their bilateral relations. However, there are several challenges, especially for India, in this regard. If the Iran-US confrontation intensifies, for example, India may find it difficult to pursue a smooth relationship with Iran.
The 21st century may not hold the same strategic logic of the 1960s and 1970s towards discovering outer space. Over a period of time, particularly after the end of the Cold War, space appears to have lost some, if not all, of its strategic significance. During 2004, the then US president, George W. Bush, had argued that the 21st century moon exploration initiative by the US should be viewed as part of a journey and not a race. Mostly, the peaceful voyage of global activities in space got a jolt when China conducted an anti-satellite test (ASAT) during January 2007.
Sarkozy’s speech at ISRO was an interesting mix of issues relating to geostrategic significance, business, and collaboration in science and technology.
The Last Space Shuttle Flight
The US is stopping the shuttle programme by design and not for want of technology or money; nor does discontinuing the space shuttle indicate that the US has lost the space race.