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The Rules-Based Order (RBO) underpins the global maritime trading and security system. A subject of growing discussion and debate in strategic studies circles, it is seen by many as a prerequisite for seaborne trade and commerce, and a crucial factor in formulating national security policy. While many Asian powers have a shared understanding of the principles of maritime conduct, regional states have tended to situate the RBO within the framework

Russia is widely regarded as one of the major revisionist powers in the world, determined to upend the global liberal order. To be a global power, Russia must become a maritime power as well. Thus, it seeks to gain control in Eurasia and the region between the Black Sea and the Baltic region. The North European Plain and the river Danube hold strategic significance for Russia, the former being a gateway to Europe and the latter the economic lynch

The end of the Cold War in 1991 presented Russia and the European Union (EU) with an opportunity to reorganise their bilateral relationship. For more than a decade, they did manage to nurture close ties. Beginning in the mid-2000s, however, the relationship steadily declined, reaching its lowest in 2014 in the aftermath of the Ukrainian crisis. As mutual grievances have accumulated since then, there has been an absence of a forward-looking agenda

At a time when it is facing Western sanctions and a proxy war on oil prices, Russia sprang a huge surprise early this month by signing a gas deal with Turkey. The deal will enable Russia to pump natural gas into a Turkish hub, near the Turkey-Greece border and from there into the southern EU market.

Africa has become essential to Russia’s geostrategic posture as Moscow seeks to overcome the backlash to its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. However, in the face of isolation and a contracting economy, Russia has realised that cultivating an entry point in Africa through conventional means such as foreign direct investment (FDI), trade, development assistance, or cultural and educational exchanges may not be its best option. Instead, Mosc

SAARC is nearly 30 years old yet is still weak. Today, South Asia is one of the world's least integrated regions. Members have weak economic ties, issues of national identity persist, and political tensions remain. What lies ahead for SAARC?

India’s growing security co-operation with Mauritius will contribute towards a ‘free and open’ western Indian region.

We are far from junking top down, paternalistic, big man rule. Regional political leaders are no different in their preferred style of governance.

Good performance invites the curse of heightened expectations unless tempered by realism. The BJP manifesto fails to walk this tightrope.

In his writings in the closing decades of the 19th century, the novelist, nationalist and patriot, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyaya placed the blame for India’s subjugation by foreign powers on what he called the “individualistic, other-worldly” philosophy of Sankhya,  a philosophy  based  on reasoning, reckoning and enumeration.[1] This brief examines Chattopadhyaya’s charge and concludes that he was unaware of the power and  this-wor

Amidst the growing distrust of the US and the absence of domestic capabilities to confront a rising Iran, the Saudis are determined to strengthen their regional alliances, especially the historic partnership with Pakistan.

Recongnising the pivotal role of technology in ensuring India?s emergence as a global player, Observer Research Foundation (ORF), New Delhi, has launched a ?Technology Initiative?. As the first event, a one-day workshop on ?Science & Technology Challenges for India? is being hosted on May 7, 2005. The workshop brings together renowned professionals to evolve collective, cohesive thinking on issues of significance to India?s S&T performance and as

This issue brief examines the complex interplay between science fiction and technology development in the age of disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and brain-computer interfaces. As the line between science and fiction continues to blur, this brief argues for strategically using science fiction narratives to inform and guide technology development and policymaking. Drawing upon historical precedents of scien

The SCO is critical for India to advance its priorities for peace and prosperity in its northern periphery and broader Eurasia.

A recent report of the 2017-2018 Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence (PSCOD) has revealed that India’s defence services are facing a severe resource crunch. Given the enormous amount of money that the country is already spending on defence, the chances are slim that the government will come up with the significantly higher amounts of funds needed for modernisation. Meanwhile, the armed forces are facing obsolescence in equipment. The wa

आव्हानांवर मात करण्यासाठी SDG 4 लक्ष्यांना आणि तरुणांना सक्षम करण्यासाठी व्यापक शैक्षणिक सुधारणा आवश्यक आहेत. तरुणांना पुढे नेण्यासाठी संधी देण्यासाठी हे प्रयत्न आवश्यक

यह संक्षिप्त विवरण विकास के लिए प्रभावी और ज़रूरी ग्लोबल गवर्नेंस के समक्ष आने वाली सबसे बड़ी चुनौतियों में से एक पर चर्चा करता है, यानी संयुक्त राष्ट्र सतत विकास लक्ष्यो�

This paper looks at debates from the days of the British Raj until now that have shaped India's strategic thought on Afghanistan. It highlights the impact of India's territorial construct on its strategic imagination and argues that India's Afghan policy is determined by its political geography. Afghanistan has proved to be a security lynchpin in South and A Central Asia over the last two decades. Home to a variety of militant networks with regi

India cannot afford to be a mere bystander to developments in its immediate Neighbourhood. A failure to assist Afghanistan at this crucial juncture would not only undermine India's long term security interests but would reflect poorly on New Delhi's reliance as a friendly partner in troubled times.

The Sony hack is a textbook example of the fog of cyberwar. The whole incident is a telling manifestation of the many aspects of cybersecurity: the question of state behavior in cyberspace; the threat to business advancing public-private cooperation in combating such attacks; and the question of motive

The so-called ‘War on Terror’ launched by the United States following the September 11, 2001 attacks in its soil has had far-reaching implications to the pursuit of peace across many parts of the world. One of the crucial areas where the war is being fought is Afghanistan, which has been both a breeding ground of terrorism and a victim of violent terrorist attacks itself. This brief analyses the role played by Japan, a major ally of the US, i

India’s claims to being a legitimate power in cyberspace have come under doubt following two recent revelations

India's second COVID-19 wave was marked by a daily surge in incident cases and a high prevalence of severe forms of the novel coronavirus. COVID-19–related studies on Indian populations have focused on aspects like seroprevalence, estimating the peak of infections, and vaccine efficacy. However, other lifestyle factors, such as activity levels, are of significance and can broaden our understanding of COVID-19. Across the world, the pandemic lif

The sanctity of "NPT-signatory" is laughable because that is a crude way of assessing a country's nuclear non-proliferation record. China has signed the NPT but has flouted every single idea behind the treaty. On the other hand, while India is not a signatory, it has upheld all the principles.

Allegations against Hasina’s government include authoritarian governance, hounding of the opposition and rampant corruption. These issues and the India factor will dominate the electoral campaign.

Many of the phenomena go back to the financial crisis of 2008, the biggest shock to the global economic system since the 1929. Nine years after 1929, a nervous, pessimistic and Hobbesian world was plunged into war. 2017 is nine years after 2008.

Sri Lanka should understand the nuances of diplomatic existence, survival and self-assertion, appreciate them where possible, accept them where needed. India and others may be blamed for Sri Lanka losing the vote but it should rather shake up Colombo to look into what had gone wrong with its foreign policy strategy, instead.

Lasting solution is complex as there is a contradiction in the perception each side has of security

The ongoing global energy crisis has highlighted countries’ vulnerabilities to energy shocks due to an overdependence on fossil fuels. Clean energy sources are an ideal option for states looking to hedge against the risks associated with fossil fuels. Moreover, recent technological advances and falling costs have placed renewables at the centre of the global energy landscape. Developing countries are now on the cusp of a histori

Oslo killer Anders Breivik is the creature of the Murdoch press which has throttled the Murrows of this world. His mind set would synchronize perfectly with Bill O'Reilly's the famous anchor of Fox News. The coverage of American military action in Afghanistan in November 2001 would have been orgasmic for Breivik.

For all the right statements and claims of the unbreakable, iron-clad relationship between Beijing and Islamabad, there was very little substance to Sharif’s trip.

Dr. Gary LaFree of the University of Maryland says in his studies of the data gathered by his department, he has noticed that in recent years, terrorist attacks have become deadlier with advances in technological knowhow. However, attacks using high technology, radiological, chemical and biological attacks, made up only a meager percentage of the total number of attacks.

India-Bangladesh ties have entered an era of consolidation and expansion. Trade figures have gone up to $7 billion, though the adverse trade balance remains an issue.

Soft power's importance has increased in the context of globalisation and the growing disquiet over the use of military power for achieving foreign policy objectives. This paper focuses specifically on soft power in India's foreign policy

A performance audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General in 2010-2011 revealed that while shipyards in the US, France, South Korea and Russia took between 66-84 months from the award of contract to the construction of a ship, in India, it took 116 to 120 months.

India lacks an institutional infrastructure for advancing the cause of democracy as a soft power.

Both journalists and civil society face grave danger in Kashmir today. But as violent militancy grows, the political system seems asleep.

India’s relationships with Bangladesh, Myanmar and China hang in the balance.

Senior opposition leaders, particularly of the BJP, have been sharply critical of the government¿s reported moves to demilitarise Siachen. While their stridency could be put down in part to the need to sound overtly patriotic during election time, it is indeed surprising that none of the leaders of the Congress Party or the UPA alliance thought it fit to respond.

Greece is having unprecedented economic problems and so is Spain which is seeing the rise of a new party Podemos. France too is in economic trouble and Germany is facing flattening out of exports and slower growth prospects.

There will soon be two important changes in the Nepal and India diplomacy, which are of significant importance to both the countries. Nepal's ambassador to India, Rukma Shumsher Rana, has been recalled while the Indian envoy to Nepal Rakesh Sood will be replaced by another career diplomat.

The shift of the non-PPP Sindhi leadership to other non-Sindhi parties, and their subsequent victories there, though limited, is shows that much of Sindhi society is looking to the rest of the country to bring about change in the Province. Better connecting Sindh to the Pakistani mainstream is now seen by many as a solution to their internal grievances.

The recent New Delhi visit of Singapore President Tony Tan Keng Yam, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the diplomatic relations, was very much fruitful to give a boost to Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj's 5s vision and enhance the skill development and cultural ties between the countries.

Despite being the ‘factory of the world,’ many of China’s industrial sectors are energy-intensive and have low value-add. At the same time, global firms are increasingly moving towards sophisticated low-cost manufacturing techniques for higher productivity gains. As a result, the Chinese Communist Party is keen to upgrade the country’s industrial base to compete in the more advanced segments, such as information technology, through the �

Improved infrastructure has a critical role in enabling a nation to apply military power. On the India-China border, there is a clear military imbalance-not just in terms of equipment and forces on the border but also in terms of the physical infrastructure. This paper will compare the infrastructure as it exists today, while identifying the gaps.

This paper looks at the recent Chinese infrastructural developments along the Sino-Indian border, including building of highways, road links and oil pipelines that have improved the country's force deployment and sustenance capabilities. The paper also assesses India?s infrastructure initiatives on the border front and argues that they are inadequate, especially in light of the Chinese developments.

As competition intensifies in the Indian Ocean Region, India loses touch with Sri Lanka and solidifies relations with the Maldives.

With every day inching closer to the penultimate battle of 2014, the lines ar e being drawn and rules of the game getting clear. Political leaders are maki ng their preferences clear about PM candidates. And with every announceme nt, any chances of Na-rendra Modi making it to 7RCR are receding.