Articles By Col Anil Athale
Sri Lanka Battlefields Revisited
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 25 Mar , 2018
As I enplaned Colombo on 28 February 2018 to return to India after spending a fortnight old memories returned! This was this author’s fourth trip to the island nation. One was lucky this time...
Understanding Pakistan’s Strategic Calculus!
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 27 Nov , 2017
The first essential step of national security policy is to understand the basis and substance of the likely adversary’s aims and objectives. History offers vital clues on the same. Without much...
Rise of China: An Enigma
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 17 Oct , 2017
Arnold J. Toynbee, a doyen of historian, in his multi volume magnum opus ‘Studies in World History’ had predicted rise of China and India and the challenge it will pose to the West dominated...
To ‘Act East’, Act in the North East India First!
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 28 Sep , 2017
As China rises and acts aggressively on our Northern borders laying claim to the whole of state of Arunachal Pradesh, establishing contact and strengthening our ancient ties with South East Asia...
David versus goliath myth on insurgency
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 28 Aug , 2017
A military historian and author of “Quest for Peace: Comparative Studies in Counterinsurgencies”. In the 20th century insurgencies were a major issue of world politics. The decade of 1960s and...
A View from Washington
By: Col Anil Athale | Date: 19 Aug , 2017
Last month I found myself, again, interacting with the various think tanks in Washington DC. This has been a tradition with me going back 26 years to 1991. Since then, this was my 8th visit to...
Anglo-Maratha Struggle for Empire: The Importance of Maritime Power
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Vol. 32.2 Apr-Jun 2017 | Date: 14 Aug , 2017
At the beginning of the seventeenth century, power equations on the West coast had undergone a major change. The Siddi of Janjira, though undefeated and surviving, was much weakened due to the...
Logic Behind Chinese Aggressive Moves!
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 05 Aug , 2017
Last two months or so have seen the Chinese PLA (Peoples Liberation Army) provoke India on the border. Easily the Doklam incident is the most serious of the lot and remains still unresolved....
Remembering a Hero in Bicentenary Year!
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Vol. 32.2 Apr-Jun 2017 | Date: 29 Jun , 2017
This year the First Nine Gorkha Rifles celebrates its bicentenary and it is natural that we remember all the men who contributed to make this Paltan one of the very best in the world. Every...
Pakistan’s Womb Bomb: Deadlier than its Nuclear Bomb
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 26 May , 2017
‘Demography is destiny’. Like geography, it influences politics, economics and issues of war and peace. Though demography (population numbers, composition and density) is not permanent and...
Countering Naxalism: What is to be done now?
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 27 Apr , 2017
The latest outrage in which the Naxals killed over 25 Policemen of the CRPF, ought to be a wake-up call. But will it be? Given the past experience (like the attack in April 2010 that killed 75...
India’s Nuclear Strategy and Brain Freeze in Delhi!
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 08 Apr , 2017
Former Defence Minister, Mr. Manohar Parrikar had set the cat amongst the pigeons and doves some months ago when he mentioned a need to have a re-look at our nuclear posture. Encouraged by this...
Remembering a Hero in Bicentenary Year!
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 24 Mar , 2017
This year the First Nine Gorkha Rifles celebrates its bicentenary and it is natural that we remember all the men who contributed to make this Paltan one of the very best in the world. Every...
Moving Beyond Cordon and Search!
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 02 Mar , 2017
As India battles Urban Insurgency in parts of Srinagar valley, I recall my experience during 1988 while I attended the Senior Command Course at College of Combat Mhow. I was an unusual student...
Understanding US Election Result
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 05 Feb , 2017
Any student of international affairs and security issues will be forced to have reasonable understanding of the US domestic dynamics since the US plays a vital role all over the world. I have...
Kashmir Valley Troubles: Has the Penny Dropped?
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 19 Sep , 2016
The recent events in Kashmir and robust Indian response does seem to indicate that Indian approach to trouble in Kashmir valley has finally come to terms with changed global scenario. Unmindful...
Kashmir: Historical Background
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 21 Aug , 2016
“Men do not make their history in isolation from the past. The memories of dead generations hang like a mill stone around the necks of present generations.” — Karl Marx Kashmiri aspiration for...
Understanding the Violence in Valley!
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 14 Jul , 2016
Insurgencies are like amoeba, constantly changing shape and size. What began as a territorial dispute between India and Pakistan in 1947 has, over time, undergone several metamorphoses. Initially...
India at Simla: Turning Victory into Diplomatic Defeat
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 02 Jul , 2016
In the 1971 Indo Pak war, all attention was focused on the Eastern front. In the West Indian successes in Punjab, (Shakarhgarh, Chicken’s neck near Akhnoor) and thrust towards NayaChor in...
Urgent Need to Have a Re Look at India’s Minimum Deterrence
By: Col Anil Athale | Issue: Net Edition | Date: 14 Jun , 2016
The need for a re-look at our nuclear posture has become imperative after the Jan 2016 Pathankot attack. What if the infiltrated terrorists had succeeded in blowing up several aircraft? How would...