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Saeed Naqvi, Distinguished Fellow at ORF, recently journeyed across Afghanistan where he met scores of political leaders, Taleban, US officials, filmmakers, journalists, NGOs, religious leaders and ordinary Afghans. The result is an insightful document on Afghanistan at the crossroads. Do Americans have an Endgame planned? Or, more important, can a superpower in a theatre of strategic importance, have a linear exit plan when multiple strategic op

One runs the risk of stepping on many corns by attempting an objective assessment of the place of the late Yasser Arafat, the leader of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), in history.

The problem of contemporary India's foreign policy making is not that states have acquired a veto over the Centre. Most state leaderships have not only supported regional economic integration and trans-border connectivity, but are also craving for it.

Modi needs to emphatically clear the air to control the ramifications of Trump’s prattling.

The Observer Research Foundation’s first Tech Huddle was held on 23 November 2023 and focused on the governance of artificial intelligence (AI) in India, highlighting the rapid growth and adoption of AI as well as the complexities associated with developing regulatory frameworks for it. AI governance is in its infancy, both globally and in India, and grapples with issues such as the explainability of AI systems as well as the embedded biases, s

There is nothing inherently empowering or sexist about technology. It just reflects the values of its creators.

Remember the Kremlin Watchers of yore during the height of the cold war and their best-sellers on the Evil Empire? And the scary stories on communism they used to disseminate? And how the newspaper columns of those days were filled with their analyses? And the so-called classified documents of the Soviet State and Communist Party to which they managed to have access and which they used liberally in their writings and books?

At a decisive meeting on the future of LAWS, countries such as Pakistan and Cuba have called for a pre-emptive ban, while others like US, Germany and Russia disagree.

African millennials need strategies to position themselves in such a way that they are able to take advantage of rather than suffer from the effects o

India’s endeavour to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a well-defined and time-bound manner is critical for national and global development. This paper examines India’s data availability to assess the SDGs related to health and nutrition. While India is still facing severe challenges of generating disaggregated information on mortality and cause-specific deaths, the desired data on nutrition and healthcare utilisation are la

The phenomenon of individuals leaving their home country and making their way to conflict zones to join terror and insurgent groups is not new. In the past few years, however, the numbers of these “foreign fighters” have increased: thousands of people from more than 80 countries have made their way to Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, and other battle zones. As countries in the West struggled to deal with these intra-geographic threats from radicalis

Left-wing activism amongst young people in the United States is on the rise, in no small part aided by the internet and social media. The generation which demographic researchers refer to as ‘Gen-Z’—or those born between the mid- to late 1990s to the early 2010s—is becoming more politically engaged. This brief offers an intellectual history of modern-day leftist politics in the US, and argues that it is primarily driven by the pur

The measures adopted by the Nepalese government are not enough to bring the ailing economy back on track

This deal temporarily shields US and NATO forces in Afghanistan, but has directly harmed Afghan civilians, security forces and allies in the region.

By moving the Mumbai High Court for rent-exemption for the MMRDA ground, and at the same time paying up-front when compelled to do, Team Anna has showed what they are worth in terms of public morals and fiscal accountability.

The Congress, with luck, must have its leader, Sonia Gandhi, back soon or, in the alternative, find some way to keep together the flock which has grown accustomed to the apotheosis of a family. A simple way is to hold party elections, never attempted after the Tirupati session of the Congress in 1993.

Increasing public spending on early childhood care and education and empowering India’s Anganwadis is important to ensure that quality early educati

Allowing women in combat roles in the Air Force is very different from such deployments in Navy or Army. This is mainly because, while the Air Force can ensure their selective employment on tasks within our borders, the same does not hold true for naval ships or more so for the Army.

This brief examines the role of West Bengal as a leverage for India to enhance its relations with its eastern and southeastern neighbours. It identifies the domestic and geo-economic aspirations of the state, and outlines the impact of certain misplaced policies and the state’s conflictual relationship with the union government on West Bengal’s development goals. The brief calls on India to nurture a pragmatic, cooperative brand of federalism

The annual gatherings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations - at the ministerial level in July and summit level in November at the East Asia Summit - have become good indicators of Asia's volatile geopolitical temperature.

The Bhutanese government has brought about reforms to upskill the youth, bridge the demand-supply mismatch in the job market and prevent further brain

The U.K. proposal emphasizes a bottom-up approach and stresses trust-building. It’s a critical first step.

Climate change poses a significant risk to global food security. Rising temperatures, extreme weather events, and shifting precipitation patterns impact food production, disrupting food supply chains, increasing food prices, and diminishing food safety. These effects are particularly apparent in developing countries, where vulnerable populations struggle to access nutritious foods and small farmers face financial challenges. Tackling the impacts

The global shortages in resources have had skewed effects on the developed and the developing world, with the latter finding it more challenging to

Australia would be holding a skills Expo in India next year which would inform prospective migrants about the employment and lifestyle opportunities available in Australia

Over the last three decades, Australia and China have established mutually beneficial economic ties. However, Australia’s decision to ask for an independent enquiry into the origins of SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, has led to a backlash from China. This brief examines the more important developments since 2015 that persuaded Australia to take measures aimed at protecting both its open economy and its democratic polity against China’s sys

Australia’s efforts to fight the surge in online child sexual abuse and exploitation during the pandemic could act as an exemplar for other nations.

Guarding against the temptation of statist developmental efforts in the space sector will be a key test for the government — and for ISRO’s scient

The Modi government must now attempt to transition India's economic engagements towards a more deliberate, durable and definitional framework. Well-administered LoCs offer a great avenue to do this -- and therefore must be given commensurate strategic priority and attention.

What is important in the UNSC decision is the symbolism of the move – a symbolism that exemplifies India’s coming of age as a global political act

Financial health of Indian banks deserves scrutiny. The RBI should strike a careful balance in its policy objectives. Tighter lending norms are unlikely to be a panacea. It must resist the temptation to resort to such short-term fixes.

This brief employs text analytics to assess the extent to which speeches at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on matters of peace and security find resonance in resolutions passed by the UN Security Council (UNSC). These two are among the six main organs of the UN system: the UNGA is the main deliberative and representative body; and the UNSC is tasked with maintaining global peace and security. This brief studies four contemporary issue

The ongoing Russia-Ukraine war has served as a laboratory test to assess the effectiveness of Cyber Warfare (CW) capabilities. It would be misleading, however, to extrapolate sweeping conclusions from this conflict about the relative ineffectiveness of CW. Rather, diligence should be exercised by Indian strategic and military planners in assessing the CW capabilities of the People’s Liberation Army Strategic Support Force (PLASSF) and enhancing

While well-established indices have been crucial in assessing advancements in gender equality, these methodologies may present an incomplete picture

Bhutan’s attempts to smoothen border issues with its northern neighbour mark a significant shift in its geopolitical perspective

By floating a tender for setting up the country’s first ground-mounted solar plant, Bhutan has made a maiden attempt at deploying renewables other t

In its attempt to assimilate the progressive faction of the Democratic Party, the former vice-president’s campaign is ceding ground on its promise o

In gradually restoring the pre-Trump status quo on H1B visas, Biden will first seek to gauge the political viability of increasing temporary work visa

It is fashionable to deride big industry and be derisive of big industrialists, casting them as carpetbaggers and robber barons who amass and accumula

Former Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Mr. M Ganapathi, has emphasised the importance of the Indian Ocean in global developments in the 21st Century and the importance now given to the region by the government.

The BIMSTEC region is among the most vulnerable in the world from increased threat due to climate change. In the foreseeable future, climate change is projected to affect each BIMSTEC member country with greater severity and frequency, thereby impeding their response capacity significantly. This brief explores the vulnerability of the region from climate change and the BIMSTEC-level initiatives that have taken place to address the issue. Although

In healthcare, one of the main rudimentary elements is health education which is lacking in India. Hygiene and cleanliness are very important as is emphasised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and if basic habits like washing hands before eating are inculcated in the people, a lot of diseases could be prevented.

Enabling greater free trade and removing NTBs should be undertaken with the goal of not just regional integration and growth but also development of communities, employment and poverty alleviation across South Asia.

India is seeing a shift towards greater financial inclusion and women's empowerment. Policies supporting this trend can create a more equitable financ

Adopting holistic approaches to address the interlinkages between health and other gender-sensitive SDG targets is key to achieving equitable and sust