IDR Blog
Revival of the Russian Military: An Assessment
Russia’s military intervention in Syria – its first beyond its immediate neighbourhood since the end of the Cold War – highlights the significant transformation that its armed forces have gone through. The mobility and reliability of both men and machines during the operations in Syria stand in sharp contrast to their performance during...
Game for the Throne: More Instability Expected in Afghanistan
In April-June 2012, ‘Democracy International’ surveyed 176 Members of the Afghan Parliament (121 from Lower House and 55 from Upper House) seeking their views on elections, electoral laws and governance. Most agreed that electoral reforms were necessary to strengthen the country’s electoral system and improve the government’s legitimacy....
Modi Doctrine for Pakistan
Since the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War, for many years India has maintained a pacifist stance with Pakistan. Several Indian Governments have repeatedly sought talks with Pakistan over numerous border disputes, trade ties and regional pacts, staying the course despite multiple insurgencies and attacks by Pakistan based terror groups. Indian...
Is North Korean Threat to Hit the USA for Real?
The mercurial North Korean dictator, Kim Jong -un, seems to have perfected the fine art of threatening the US with a missile strike every now and then. For quite some time now, North Korea, described as “a rogue state” and “hermit kingdom” has been claiming a series of significant breakthroughs in realizing its objective of developing a...
Pakistani Army Tightens the Noose
Irrespective of the official status in Pakistan, the swinging tides of the ongoing tussle of one-upmanship between the hapless politicians and the assertive military men is again weighing heavily in favour of the soldering fraternity. The brief interlude of the Zulfikar Ali Bhutto reign was perhaps the only time in the Pakistani history when...