Indian Defence Review Online

Defence Purchases: time India asserts itself

By Maj Gen Mrinal Suman
Issue: Vol 24.4 Oct-Dec 2009

Press reports have been highlighting Russian refusal to deliver aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov at the contracted price and within the agreed delivery period. It is demanding more money on the plea that the Russian technicians had underestimated the quantum of work required to restore the fire-ravaged ship.

February 2nd, 2010.

Arihant: the annihilator

By Rear Adm AP Revi
Issue: Vol 24.4 Oct-Dec 2009

The launching of the Arihant by the Prime Minister (PM) on 26th July 2009 has hopefully, at last, partially lifted the top security veil over the Advance Technology Vessel (ATV) Project. In that light, to the extent feasible,

February 2nd, 2010.

“Is war around the corner?”

By Vice Admiral Arun Kumar Singh
Issue: Vol 24.4 Oct-Dec 2009

A few month’s back, Bharat Verma, Editor of the Indian Defence Review, in an article, had predicted that China may attack India by 2012. Frankly, at that time, I did not agree with this prophecy, because in my opinion China would not want a war till it becomes a true super power by 2050,and in [...]

January 1st, 2010.

Bows, Arrows and Nuclear Weapons

By Ajey Lele
Issue: Vol 24.4 Oct-Dec 2009

Just few years before India got its independence an unhealthy collision took place between the worlds of physics and politics. In 1945 the Americans nuked Japan. Since then in some parts of the world national security has become synonymous with nuclear weapons. Subsequently, during the Cold War era these weapons did succeed in bringing stability. [...]

January 1st, 2010.

Incursions, Now and Then

By Claude Arpi
Issue: Vol 24.4 Oct-Dec 2009

Chinese incursions have been making headlines in the Indian media. Unfortunately, the Indian leadership prefers to mitigate the facts, to not “hurt feelings of the Chinese” or “make things worse”. After all, they say, that China is our neighbour for a long time to come and we have to learn to live with it!

January 1st, 2010.

Maoists and the Armed Forces

By Gp Capt RK Prasad
Issue: Vol 24.4 Oct-Dec 2009

Armed forces personnel hailing from the Red Corridor are being subjected to intimidation and extortion by the Maoists for at least two decades now. The families of the servicemen residing in their native places are being forced to part with their hard earned money to fill the coffers of the Maoists.

December 15th, 2009.

The Fragile Af-Pak Policy

By Prakash Nanda
Issue: Vol 24.4 Oct-Dec 2009

With each passing day, it is becoming increasingly obvious that the Obama administration’s so-called Af-Pak policy is simply not working. The fraudulent Presidential elections in Afghanistan, coupled by the rampant corruption in all walks of life in that hapless country, have not made the NATO-propped Karzai government in Kabul either stable or popular.

December 15th, 2009.

India’s Foreign Policy : A Muddle for Sixty Two Years

By Maj Gen Sheru Thapliyal
Issue: Vol 24.4 Oct-Dec 2009

Introduction
The India-Pakistan joint statement at Sharm-al-Sheikh during the NAM conference in which Balochistan was mentioned for no rational reasons has once again brought into sharp focus, lack of direction, absence of any strategic thought and a shocking unawareness of our national interest on part of our foreign policy establishment. Those who have been carefully following [...]

December 1st, 2009.

Prospects for Democratization in Myanmar: Impact on India

By David I Steinberg
Issue: Vol 24.4 Oct-Dec 2009

According to the military junta that rules Myanmar,1 the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) is on the cusp of the completion in 2010 of its self-ordained “roadmap” to a form of “democracy” in the country - an election, the inauguration of a bicameral representative national legislature, local legislatures, and the operational stage of the [...]

December 1st, 2009.

Defence PSUs : The Great Betrayl

By Gp Capt AG Bewoor
Issue: Vol 24.4 Oct-Dec 2009

Introduction
When the saras crashed, killing its crew, the deafening silence in the media, as also from those who know about flight testing, design and manufacture of aeroplanes, and the unforeseen dangers in this activity, was rudely apparent. What is the Saras for? Who would use it? What kind of pilots would fly such a piece [...]

December 1st, 2009.

The Big Picture

By Bharat Verma
Issue: Vol 24.4 Oct-Dec 2009

New Delhi cannot afford to sit around while others plot its destruction.
Surrounded with sullied strategic environment and the spreading fire that engulfs the region, New Delhi can either continue to live in fear as it has in the past, or fight back.

November 17th, 2009.