Boosting ties with France The Statesman 18 Jul 2023 France was recovering from riots which lashed the nation following the killing of Nahel Merzouk a 17-year-old youth of Moroccan and Algerian descent by the police at a traffic stop. India refused to comment stating it was an internal matter of France. Simultaneously the European parliament discussed Manipur riots. Christian groups […]
How Khalistan movement is hollow, absurd, and just an irritant Firstpost 17 Jul 2023 We have recently been witnessing interesting scenes being played out in UK, Canada, Australia and the US. Sikhs, permanent residents of these countries, with almost no affinity or links to India, except religion, standing in protest outside Indian embassies and consulates, demanding the creation of […]
The SCO summit: Much ado about nothing The Excelsior 15 Jul 2023 The recently concluded SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization) summit displayed existing differences between nations of the organization, rather than unity. India, moving the summit to an on-line mode from an in-person event, had multiple intentions. Apart from avoiding the embarrassment of PM Modi interacting with Shehbaz Sharif, in […]
Riots in France have lessons for Europe The Statesman 11 Jul 2023 In 2005, two French youth of Malian and Tunisian descent were electrocuted as they fled the police in a suburb of Paris. Their deaths sparked riots in France and neighbouring countries, lasting three weeks. The rioters, mostly youngsters and unemployed youth from suburban housing projects (referred as […]
How the Army is building confidence and healing wounds in Manipur TOI blog 10 Jul 2023 Images of women (Meira Paibis) gheraoing an army column to prevent them from arresting members of a known militant group, KYKL, display the complexity of the situation in Manipur as do images of thousands of innocents, internally displaced, living in army established relief camps, […]
SCO Summit: Anti-terrorism stance dominates the show India vs disinformation 05 Jul 2023 Addressing the SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization) heads of state forum, Indian PM Narendra Modi spoke out against terrorism in all its forms, an aspect which has impacted India for a prolonged duration. In the presence of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Pak PM Shehbaz Sharif, Modi […]
Remodelling the medical corps The Statesman 04 Jul 2023 Theaterization is well on its way. Recent announcements indicate that to some extent the services have compromised on their demands, right or wrong, is a separate issue. Agniveers are now the order of the day as also is manpower reduction, all intended to push cost cutting. One service which has […]
India, US and Pakistan The Excelsior 03 Jul 2023 The India-US joint statement at the end of PM Modi’s visit to the US mentioned, ‘Prime Minister Modi and President Biden reiterated the call for concerted action against all UN-listed terrorist groups. They strongly condemned cross-border terrorism, the use of terrorist proxies and called on Pakistan to take immediate action to […]
Mercenaries and the state: Why private military firms won’t disappear despite Wagner fiasco Firstpost 30 Jun 2023 The short-lived revolt by Russia’s Wagner group, owned by Yevgeny Prigozhin, a close Putin aide, on 24th Jun, reignited the debate on Private Military Companies (PMCs) employed by a state. The Wagner group has, apart from Ukraine, also been involved in operations […]
India and Pakistan post Modi’s US visit Amar Ujala 29 Jun 2023 भारत की पाकिस्तान पर फिर हुई कूटनीतिक जीत, पड़ोस में बुरा दौर खत्म होने की उम्मीदें भी कम प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी और अमेरिकी राष्ट्रपति जो बाइडन की औपचारिक बातचीत के बाद जारी संयुक्त बयान से पाकिस्तान की बेचैनी खत्म होने का नाम ही नहीं ले रही है। […]