Search

China’s aircraft carrier programme anchors its transformation from a continental to a maritime power. The Liaoning, Shandong, and EMALS-equipped Fujian together underscore Beijing’s intent to operate far from its shores, blending audacious innovation with disciplined, experience-driven learning. Unlike the United States’ (US) mature carrier operations model, China’s EMALS effort remains exploratory yet strategically purposeful, aimed at d

Since Xi Jinping became general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in 2013, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has witnessed an accelerated modernisation drive. Following the 2015-16 organisational reforms, the CPC further standardised its services-level force structure and upgraded its military doctrine, combat capabilities, and weapons systems. This report analyses recent improvements in the structure, including the creation of t

China’s evolving security dynamics with the United States have compelled it to rethink its nuclear strategy to achieve effective deterrence. It is aiming to modernise its nuclear arsenal and increase its nuclear ambiguity through conventional-nuclear entanglement. Ambiguity will increase the risks of mischaracterisation and can have a destabilising impact on the Indo-Pacific region. This paper highlights two areas where India ought to be most c

China’s nuclear expansion could lead to a spiraling arms race.

Arguably the most significant global phenomenon of the past four decades has been the economic and strategic rise of China. Today analysts are confronting questions of whether China will replace the United States as the world’s biggest power, if it will do so peacefully or through confrontation and conflict, how it will subvert the existing system of global rules and institutions, and whether a new form of bipolarity would emerge to accommodate

Beijing’s Southeast Asia outreach may complicate the U.S.’s efforts to build a coalition to isolate or deter China economically.

China’s moves in the region, despite the pandemic, are only likely to generate fear and inspire greater cooperation with Washington.

Despite the hypocrisy and power politics at the foundation of the GSI, it would be foolish to dismiss it or assume that it will not garner support from other countries.

Military capabilities remain the sine qua non of international politics. Therefore, critical defence reforms in India will have to be pushed with greater vigour. Without institutional, doctrinal and procedural changes, New Delhi will not be able to make the most of this moment in global geopolitics

The engagement by India and China in the West Asia region is a good example of their metamorphosing approaches

The Indian Ocean is important to China because Chinese trade and energy resources transit this route.

It was New Delhi which first pointed out the drawbacks of the Chinese model.

Allocations made for capital expenditure must increase if India is to keep pace with China's rising military might

As dependable allies, the India-France partnership is a force for global good in a volatile world engulfed in multiple crises

Despite the positive signs in India-Russia ties, one must be careful not to overestimate their significance when considered alongside some long-term trends in international affairs such as the relations of the US and its closest challengers China and Russia.

In the past decade, Japan made certain critical changes in its defence and security policy. These include enhancing the country’s defence capabilities, introducing the right to collective self-defence, abandoning the ban on arms exports, strengthening its alliance with the United States, and promoting its vision of a ‘Free and Open Indo-Pacific’. Japan has introduced these changes incrementally, as a response to changing strategic circumsta

This paper explores the status and the need for the United States (US) to have a port-led strategy in place. Further, it argues that a strong port-led strategy straddling economic concerns with security imperatives on the back of its vast coastline and unmatched global network of overseas bases for the US could strongly support its Indo-Pacific strategy. A close examination of existing port-focused strategies by the US, particularly its Navy, and

Commander of the US Seventh Fleet, Vice Admiral Scott H. Swift, feels that dialogues and frank discussions are the best solution to the ongoing disputes in the Indo-Pacific region.

Despite public display of affection, all is not well in the India-Russia relationship.

The US-India strategic partnership is rooted in the Indo-Pacific region. Nonetheless, developments in Europe, such as the war in Ukraine, have implications for US-India cooperation. The Ukraine conflict could distract the US, diverting its attention to Europe, and impeding its efforts to build Indian strategic capacity. Differing responses to the war can also create tensions between the two countries, as the US seeks to punish Russia, and

AUKUS fits into a growing network of minilaterials crisscrossing the Indo-Pacific and rooted in shared strategic interests.

The Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center (APARC) of Stanford University and the Observer Research Foundation, had co-sponsored a conference entitled "Does South Asia exist? - Prospects for Regionalism in South Asia." As the title suggests there was considerable and intense debate on this subject during the two-day conference.

This brief examines the historical dimension of the tensions between Japan and South Korea and its implications on the current breakdown in their bilateral relationship. It argues that the battle over historical memory has led to lasting animosity between the two countries, contributing to serious problems in their defence ties and creating space for China to expand its influence in the region. The brief explores why efforts to overcome the histo

Leaving Moscow to engage with North Korea may also free China of the burden of having to justify its relations with North Korea in light of Beijing’s increasing business interests with the West

The Indo-Pacific region is becoming the world's new strategic and economic ‘centre of gravity’. Indeed, the accelerated trajectory of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) in recent years highlights the region’s growing importance. The Quad countries have committed to a rules-based order and a free and open Indo-Pacific, and are aiming to develop resilience across domains, such as in the maritime space, to counter and deter aggressive

Under WTO rules such a move would require consensus that can only be worked out by extensive negotiations.

Whether France can be a trusted partner in managing China is a question that many have asked after the fiasco of Macron’s visit.

The event revolved around the current Chinese foreign policy in south-east Asia, its BRI project and relations with the Indo-Pacific countries and how the world views China under these geopolitical scenarios and Chinese reactions towards them.

As China pursues its expansionist ambitions in the greater South China Sea, Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is working to enhance his country’s ability to exercise its sovereignty and sovereign rights. Towards this end, Manila is expanding its strategic options through robust external partnerships and national policy recalibrations to secure its lawful waters in what it calls the West Philippine Sea. There are concerns, however, abou

This report makes an appraisal of the geopolitical, geostrategic and geoeconomic dimensions of the linkages between India’s east coast and the ‘extended Bay’—Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia—with respect to port logistics, trade interactions, disaster management and strategic convergences. The aim of this study is three-fold: a) to examine the existing nature of port and commercial linkages between India and the aforesaid lit

This brief examines the efficacy of the inclusion of private capital in development finance, using the cases of certain countries that have met with success in utilising such a strategy. It underlines the experiences of institutions like the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and the United States International Development Finance Corporation (US-IDFC) that use innovative financial tools to support international financial institution

Their established ties rest on a foundation of common values and goals

Sittwe Port in Myanmar’s Rakhine State is part of India’s Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport project. It connects India’s northeastern states to the Bay of Bengal, advancing the country’s Act East policy and strengthening regional connectivity. Operational since May 2023, the port has handled over 109,000 tonnes of cargo so far, showcasing its potential to bolster trade. However, challenges to the port’s commercial viability persist,

The COVID-19 pandemic sparked rapid digitalisation worldwide, with work-from-home interactions, online payments, and online consultations for various services becoming acceptable practices. While this shift in the manner and nature of work brought enormous benefits, crucially in terms of access, it has also increased the kind of cyber security threats that countries face, with vulnerabilities felt particularly in the health and financial sectors.