Indian Defence Review

China has no claim on Tibet and East Turkestan, what to talk of Ladakh

The history of South Asia and China was dominated by the British broadly from the 17th century to mid-20th century. Today, almost seven decades after the exit of the British, India and China remain unable to reconcile to their new destinies and move on. Border identified and delineated at the time of the British rule...

China’s INEW and the Sleepy Elephant

Following the news of some 40,000 cyber attacks in a week by China, an interesting discussion on TV had a former additional secretary R&AW say that China became serious with cyber warfare when it unveiled its strategy of ‘Unrestricted Warfare’ in 1999. He said China has a dedicated 50,000-strong force for cyber...

Military Spending – Getting Bang for the Buck

A nation maintains its military as an instrument of national power and means of safeguarding national interests. Military capabilities in turn mean expenditure. Universally countries spend in proportion to their economic development or in direct response to immediate security threats. We seem to be guided by neither....

China has no claim on Tibet and East Turkestan, what to talk of Ladakh

China’s INEW and the Sleepy Elephant

Imran Khan’s ‘Reverse Swing’ on Osama bin Laden’s Death

Since an occasional slip of the tongue is unavoidable, such inadvertent mistakes don’t usually stir up a controversy as long the mistake is corrected immediately. But rather than clearing the air, when such an amendment ends up creating more confusion, then to perceive it as a ‘Freudian slip’ is but natural....

Hypersonic Weapons

A headache for the US defence establishment is hypersonic weapons of Russia and China. Hypersonic missiles flying above Mach 5 can be cruise-type missiles, powered throughout flight or carried on board a ballistic missile from which the hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV) separates and then flies to its target. Russia’s...

Air Elements in Special Ops

Twelve multi-role all-weather Mirage 2000 fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF) supported by SU-30MKI air-superiority fighters and combat enablers like the Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) and Flight Refueling Aircraft (FRA), carried out deep air strikes into Northern Pakistan, including at targets...

The Space Frontier – Arena for Hybrid War

Following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s announcement of Rs 20 lakh crore economic package, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in a press briefing on May 16 that future projects for planetary exploration and outer space travel will be open for private sector. She said, “India already has the benefit of an...

Kashmiriyat and secular philosophy of Indian Army are intrinsically linked

History provides innumerable examples of the most beautiful places, rich in natural resources, commerce, education and boasting of an enlightened civilisation becoming victim to barbaric attacks by outsiders who wish to partake of the benefits by use of force. It has happened in the Indian Sub-continent innumerable...

India: Challenges & Opportunities - The War against Terror

India has faced insurgencies and terrorism since independence with the ingress of ‘Razakars’ from Pakistan with an intermix of regulars, reportedly even led by British Officers! The 80’s saw a growth of such acts and post 1984 began the terrorism in Punjab demanding a separate state of Khalistan, 1990 marked the...

Anatomy of Stone Pelting During Encounters in Kashmir

It’s very easy for activists and the intelligentsia who sit safely in the confines of their homes to decry temporary suspension of mobile and internet services in an area where an is encounter going on between terrorists and security forces in J&K. For such ‘concerned’ champions of human rights, these actions is...

Military Spending – Getting Bang for the Buck

Corporatization versus Privatization

On May 16, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) would be corporatized. It was emphasized this did not mean privatization and the corporatized OFB will remain under the government control – read Ministry of Defence (MoD). Shortly thereafter news came that thousands of...

Fully Autonomous Military Systems – Challenges in Development

After the advent of Artificial Intelligence (AI), few advanced nations are busy in developing and deploying an array of autonomous weapon systems to attain better speed and accuracy. All fatal missions are likely to be undertaken by unmanned systems in future. AI based Tactical Decision Support Systems (TDSS) could...

The Chinese View

The article is presenting what the Chinese are writings in their...

Tibet ‘slips out’ of India’s hands; it’s advantage China on the border

The border clashes between India and China, that has cost the lives of troops on both sides, is a pointer to the...

Chinese Experts on Galwan: "Indian Army’s" poor military sense makes it easy for PLA

The article is presenting what the Chinese are writing about India and the Indian Army in their Chinese Media. The Economist, in its May 28th issue carried a story on China’s Wolf Warrior diplomacy and called it a gamble. The article was written after the release of Chinese action flick “Wolf Warrior 2,” the highest-grossing film in Chinese history. “This action flick is both...

Growing Drug Addiction in Kashmir

Prolonged nature of the Kashmir conflict and the resultant trauma caused especially to the youth has largely remained unaddressed. Lack of focused post conflict healthcare services and increased proliferation of drugs from across the Line of Control has exacerbated the problems...

India, Tibet, Xinjiang: Tales of China's Broken Promises

The Ladakh situation, especially the brutal killing of the Commanding Officer (CO) of the 16 Bihar regiment and 19 of his men, has generated a lot of debate in the printed media as well the TV studios; some observers noticed that India has the largest number of experts not only in...

Treachery and Valour

Barren, cold desert High, rocky mountains Icy freezing winds Desolate, uneasy loneliness Unexpected, barbaric treachery brutal, tragic consequences Loss of life and limb yes, most certainly but more significantly Loss of trust and...

Frontiers and Borders: Breaking the logjam on the Northern Border

Listen in the north, my boys, there’s trouble in the wind; Tramp o’ Cossack hooves in front, grey great coats behind. Trouble on the Frontier of a most amazin’ kind …. —Rudyard Kipling, Mutiny of the Mavericks Kipling’s words referred to the Russians at the frontier, it’s the Chinese today. The Treaty of Westphalia 24 October 1648, involving no fewer than 194 states represented by 179 plenipotentiaries negotiating over a few years...