A Vision of Maritime India 2020

“What ship? Where bound?” is the traditional nautical query that goes out on the air when a warship encounters a stranger on the high seas. Recently an Indian Navy frigate on passage to the Persian Gulf was challenged on radio by a ship of the Coalition Task Force on patrol: “Unknown ship what are you [...]

Kashmir Imbroglio

Pakistan has been a national obsession since independence – initially because of the trauma of partition and later perpetuated by the Kashmir imbroglio. Three wars and

End-Use Monitoring Regime

The United States has always been very apprehensive of its exported defence equipment falling in the hands of elements inimical to US interests. The inability of the US Government to account for all the exported Stinger shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles has been a major cause for alarm. There is the ominous possibility of some of the [...]

Transformation of The Chinese Military

China’s fifth white paper, published in December 2004, outlines the objectives of a military policy focused on Taiwan1. Weaponry and equipment are identified as “the crucial material and technological basis for pushing forward the Revolution in Military Affairs with Chinese characteristics” and “building a strong military by means of science and technology”. Addressing the Cross [...]

Theatre Commands

The Kargil war identified certain inadequacies in the functioning of our Higher Defence Organisation. Subsequently, the Kargil Review Committee enumerated the need for a thorough review of the national security system and recommended instituting the post of CDS. After the report of the Group of Ministers was submitted, substantial reforms did take place in the [...]

Pakistan’s Fault Line

The so-called land of the pure, Pakistan, on its creation in 1947 had approximately 13 percent minorities residing within an Islamic population of 76 million. In its unholy fervour to achieve physical instead of the spiritual purity, the minorities were reduced to 2.5 percent even as the country’s population soared to 156 millions by the year [...]