Military Archives - Page 2 of 4

Paraguay’s Military: Internal Security Challenges vs Bloc Obsolescence

Paraguay’s military faces the twin challenges of maintaining internal and external security, and fighting narco-trafficking while facing bloc obsolescence of its existing assets.

Argentina’s Military Decline

While the Argentinian military’s desperate state of affairs can be partly blamed on the country’s economic woes, a substantial portion of the blame must fall on the somewhat tense relationship between the military and the civilian government.

Russia’s New Military Doctrine: An Overview

The new military doctrine reflects Russia’s views on the changing geo-political order. It perceives key military risks as emanating primarily from the ‘West’ and dwells on measures to counter them.

Rajorshi Roy
April 16, 2015
IDSA Comments

Military Courts in Pakistan: A Soft Coup by the Pakistan Army?

Why is the Pakistan military pushing for Military Courts when the country already has a fairly robust Anti Terrorism Act together with designated Anti Terrorism Courts set up specifically to try terrorism related offences?

Arun Sahgal
January 14, 2015
IDSA Comments

Army’s Ingenious Frontier Diplomacy

To reshape public confidence further, the Union Home Ministry should quickly address the long festering issue of redeploying at least one regiment of the sashastra seema bal (SSB) in Ladakh. Initially raised as Special Service Bureau in the 1960s, SSB effectively involved natives for building a second line of defence against adversaries.

P. Stobdan
February 05, 2014
IDSA Comments

The Cholas: Some Enduring Issues of Statecraft, Military Matters and International Relations

The article addresses the deficit in the indigenous, rich historical knowledge of south India. It does this by examining the military and political activities of the Cholas to understand the employment of various supplementary strategies. The article deals with the engagements and battles of the Cholas with other kingdoms of south India, and ‘externally’ with Sri Lanka. It begins with an exposition of various types of alliances that were an integral part of the military strategy of the time.

Rereading Mao’s Military Thinking

Although the nature of warfare has changed beyond recognition since the 1920s and 1930s when Chairman Mao Zedong penned his main military writings, his military thoughts are still a point of reference for any discussion on military thinking in modern China. Developments in warfare have superseded Mao’s operational principles and tactics visualised in his three-stage warfare; however, his philosophical and political understanding of war has value that transcends time and space.

Role of the Indian Military in Disasters

It needs to be noted that discipline and efficiency is the first demand in disaster response and relief tasks, which are often dangerous missions and quite naturally the military brings in order in post-disaster operations.

P. K. Gautam
July 05, 2013
IDSA Comments

Needed: A Better Appraisal System for Better Leaders

There has been a palpable decline in the standards of morals, ethics and values as observed by officers in the armed forces and the bond between officers and men has weakened. This could be because officers with the requisite qualities are not adequately groomed to rise to the level of battalion commanders. The present appraisal system is largely to blame, it being based on a single Annual Confidential Report. A further drawback is that only superior officers report on a ratee. Inputs for appraisal need to be drawn from multiple sources geared towards a ‘360 degree evaluation’.

Ethics and Military Leadership

‘Ethics’ derived from the Greek word ‘Ethicos’, means character or manners and guide actions thereby becoming a ‘normative discipline’. Military Ethics applies to a specialized realm and has developed principles appropriate to it over time to help guide future operations. The armed forces must be always ethically led to uphold the defence of the nation and its national interests. Ethical leadership embodying the ideals of the profession of arms entails creating ethical command climates that set the conditions for positive outcomes and ethical behaviour.