New beginnings in west Asia The Statesman 14 Mar 2023 The withdrawal of one power from a region opens doors for the entry of another. During his visit to Riyadh, in Jul 2022, President Biden claimed he raised the ‘execution’ of Jamal Khashoggi with their Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS). Saudi Foreign Minister stated that MBS […]
Targeting Kashmiri terrorists in Pakistan The Excelsior 07 Mar 2023 Pakistan news agencies confirmed the death of Syed Khalid Raza, former commander of the Pakistan-based terror outfit Al Badr outside his residence in Karachi recently. He was killed by a single bullet to the head, implying a planned assassination. The Sindhi nationalist group, Sindhudesh Revolutionary Army (SRA) has been […]
Mollycoddling China is not the solution The Statesman 07 Mar 2023 In a podcast with ANI, External Affairs Minister, S Jaishankar stated, ‘Look, they (China) are the bigger economy. What am I going to do? As a smaller economy, I am going to pick up a fight with the bigger economy. It is not a question of being reactionary, […]
Reducing army footprint in Kashmir: A bold, brave and welcome decision First Post 01 Mar 2023 There have been media reports that the government is considering reducing the involvement of the army in parts of Kashmir. The Rashtriya Rifles (RR), which have been the backbone of anti-militancy operations in the region and are possibly the world’s best counterterrorism force, […]
A year into the war The Excelsior 28 Feb 2023 Biden’s visit to Kiev signalled a year into the conflict which is nowhere near termination and has transformed from a war between two states into a proxy conflict. While the west backs Ukraine it blocks all support to Russia, accusing Russia of being the invader. What the west fails […]
Strategic lessons from the Ukraine conflict The Statesman 28 Feb 2023 In 2017, Manohar Parrikar, as the defence minister, reduced India’s ammunition holding from 40 to 10 days on the premise that future conflicts would be short, intense and swift. This was a follow up of a CAG report which stated that Indian ammunition supplies can only sustain a […]
The Khalistan movement The Excelsior 25 Feb 2023 Reports have emerged of defacing of Hindu temples in Canada and Australia by pro-Khalistan elements and of clashes between India supporters and pro-Khalistan groups from both these nations as also the UK. Voting in the so-called ‘non-binding Khalistan referendum’ has been reported from Italy, Canada, UK, Australia and Pakistan, all of […]
The world responds to a rising India The Statesman 21 Feb 2023 Addressing the press in Bangalore prior to Aero India 2023, the US Charge d’Affaires, Elizabeth Jones, stated ‘India is a partner of choice for the US,’ adding, ‘our growing diplomatic and security cooperation over the last year is evidence of this.’ She went on to state that […]
The balloon fallout The Excelsior 14 Feb 2023 Politics in democracies implies targeting the government at every opportunity as part of vote bank politics. How this impacts international ties is of no concern to those involved. India has witnessed it regularly. It was visible in the US when the Chinese balloon overflew the country. It was neither the first […]
India’s changing security threats The Statesman 14 Feb 2023 There is a belief that a weak Pakistan is not good for India. As Pakistan weakens, its ability to contain growth of terrorist groups would also diminish, converting the region, spreading from the Indian border to Afghanistan, into a hotbed of terrorism. Pakistan currently faces much more than just an […]