Search: For - Politics

1197 results found

Is China challenging India’s West Asia success story?
Aug 25, 2023

Is China challenging India’s West Asia success story?

While India’s diplomatic and political outreach with West Asia has been a success story over the past decade, the geopolitics of technology has the potential to offer a challenge.

Is Egypt back to square one?
Jul 22, 2013

Is Egypt back to square one?

The eviction of Muslim Brotherhood from power in Cairo may have significant implications on the course of the civil war in Syria too. The shape of regional politics has definitely taken a new turn.

Is India ready to be a part of the Non Proliferation Regimes?
May 20, 2011

Is India ready to be a part of the Non Proliferation Regimes?

With the ongoing multi-polarisation of global politics, new powers would emerge which would in turn increase global insecurity and lead to a greater demand for nuclear weapons even by the countries that as of now do not possess them, cautioned Prof. Rajesh Rajagopalan during an ORF roundtable on nuclear non proliferation.

Islamic State propaganda in India
Apr 16, 2020

Islamic State propaganda in India

What is new is the pro-IS online ecosystem recognising an opportunity within Indian domestic politics.

Israel’s Nationality Bill is challenging the core of Jewish identity
Jul 21, 2018

Israel’s Nationality Bill is challenging the core of Jewish identity

It is a distinct divergence that has defined the debate over a critical question of identity and politics and cracked open a faultline moderate Israeli (Jewish) society has tried to brush under the carpet for the last seven decades.

It's Rajapaksa all the way
Jan 27, 2010

It's Rajapaksa all the way

The victory confirms earlier predictions that the fulcrum of national politics has moved away from the urban centres and their elite

Jahangiri justice, Tughlaqi judges
May 09, 2018

Jahangiri justice, Tughlaqi judges

Pakistan’s paying the price of involving both judiciary and military in politics. India must take heed.

Keep shifts in the West’s China consensus under watch
Jul 31, 2023

Keep shifts in the West’s China consensus under watch

New Delhi has  geopolitical opportunities in China rethinks underway in Germany and other countries

Macron’s Re-election, A Victory With Challenges
Apr 29, 2022

Macron’s Re-election, A Victory With Challenges

France has voted, Europe is relieved, and the French President needs to move fast to douse the flames of polarisation

Mainstreaming sustainability outcomes in big infrastructure projects
May 13, 2020

Mainstreaming sustainability outcomes in big infrastructure projects

Urban infrastructure projects using brownfield or greenfield development can cause damage to natural habitats. To achieve the Agenda 2030 goal of “leaving no one behind” while mitigating the destruction of habitats, an integrated approach towards infrastructure development must be adopted. This paper outlines the current paradigms of sustainable infrastructure provision, highlighting how and why sustainability outcomes are overlooked at diffe

Making Dreams Work
Aug 16, 2004

Making Dreams Work

The twin messages on the Independence Day, respectively from President A P J Abdul Kalam and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, have in them core ideas on core issues and core values that have got marginalized in the rough and tumble of every day living and every day politics since the nation c attained Freedom 57 years ago.

Maldives: 'Currency float' cause for political concern
May 20, 2011

Maldives: 'Currency float' cause for political concern

A legislative deadlock involving the Executive and Parliament on the one hand, and the Executive and the Judiciary on the other, both leading to a serious and a series of constitutional crisis kept Maldivian politics and politicians on their toes for most of 2010.

Maldives: How independent is Independence?
Jul 24, 2015

Maldives: How independent is Independence?

For a nation celebrating the golden jubilee of the country's Independence, Maldives has been at sixes and sevens through the previous year. And for a people who have taken politics and democracy with all its dynamism and vibrancy,

Maldives: Political scene hots up again
Mar 06, 2013

Maldives: Political scene hots up again

After a week of relative lull on the political front, Maldivian politics revved up on March 5, after the police detained former President Mohammed Nasheed, for production before the Hulhumale' court.

Maldives: Will Gayoom's opting out impact polls?
Feb 26, 2013

Maldives: Will Gayoom's opting out impact polls?

Gayoom's decision means more things than one in contemporary Maldivian politics. His reference to his party having other worthy candidates for the presidency could imply that Gayoom may not back the candidacy of President Mohammed Waheed Hassan Manik.

Mapping the Arc of US Support to Ukraine: Economic, Political, and Strategic Imperatives
Apr 24, 2024

Mapping the Arc of US Support to Ukraine: Economic, Political, and Strategic Imperatives

The US has provided financial and military support to Ukraine since 2014, when Russia took control of Crimea, and more firmly since February 2022, when the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war began. Indeed, US military, political, and strategic support to Ukraine is crucial to Kyiv as the conflict continues. For the Biden administration, aid to Ukraine is a vital principle on which his party politics hinges; it is a critical pathway to rebuild transatlant

Maritime Security and Development in the South-West Indian Ocean Region: Harnessing India’s Engagement with Small Island Developing States
Apr 12, 2022

Maritime Security and Development in the South-West Indian Ocean Region: Harnessing India’s Engagement with Small Island Developing States

In recent years, the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) of the South-West Indian Ocean (SWIO) region have emerged as vital security and developmental partners in the geopolitics of the Indian Ocean Region (IOR)—thereby gaining prominence in India’s foreign policy priorities. This paper examines India’s bilateral and multilateral engagement with the SIDS of the SWIO region, and argues that India should consider the concerns of the

Mecca summit: Peace initiative or one-upmanship
Aug 18, 2012

Mecca summit: Peace initiative or one-upmanship

Any evaluation of Shia politics in West Asia would be flawed until it takes into account the considerable influence that the holy city of Najaf exerts on Baghdad, Teheran, the Hezbullah and the majority of Bahrainis.

Middle East muddle
Oct 11, 2024

Middle East muddle

Tel Aviv doesn’t seem to have any political endgame beyond the destruction of its adversaries. But without a political strategy, battlefield gains won’t amount to much

Modi and Buddhism: Between Cultural and Faith-Based Diplomacy
Nov 30, 2015

Modi and Buddhism: Between Cultural and Faith-Based Diplomacy

India has always been shy of adding a religious tint to its foreign policy. In the last decade, however, the aspiring global power began engaging in what has come to be called 'Buddhist diplomacy' in its outreach to countries in the South, East and Southeast Asia. 􀀫e prime minister is diligently pursuing India's 'Buddhist agenda' and taking it beyond its borders, emphasising the Indian and Hindu links with Buddhism. Concurrently, another Asian

Money matters: Discussing the economics of the INSTC
Apr 24, 2017

Money matters: Discussing the economics of the INSTC

India, Iran and Russia have decided to begin using the part-ready International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), a multimodal network of sea, rail and road routes between India, Iran, Central Asia and Russia. As the broader politics in the region undergo new configurations that may put to question the project’s prospects, and the evolving security situation demands continuous appraisal, it is time to refocus discussion on the economics o

National discourse needed on LEMOA
Sep 20, 2016

National discourse needed on LEMOA

There are no free lunches in international politics. LEMOA is thus a 'fair' exchange for the US backing India on civil nuclear deal.

National sovereignty and international law
Dec 08, 2020

National sovereignty and international law

You would say that Trudeau was ‘playing politics’ and that his remarks are really addressed to the Sikh community of Canada. So what’s the problem? After all, did not our Prime Minister undertake major political rallies in the US? In the Houston ‘Howdy Modi’ rally last year, US President Donald Trump himself participated, uncharacteristically playing second fiddle, all because he, like all democratic politicians, likes votes.

Needless controversy over Modi's US visa
Aug 01, 2013

Needless controversy over Modi's US visa

International politics rather than law or policy will also play a key role in a future Modi visit to the US. There is certainly an element of the hyperbole in Obama's declaration that the American relationship with India is "a defining partnership of the century ahead". But it contains more than a grain of truth.

Nepal’s Continuing Quest for Federalism and Peace
Sep 10, 2013

Nepal’s Continuing Quest for Federalism and Peace

This paper analyses the debate surrounding federal restructuring in Nepal and the position taken by various political stakeholders. It argues that an early political consensus on federalism is imperative; otherwise, the country may slip into greater ethnic conflict. Nepal is currently experiencing perhaps one of the most turbulent phases in its contemporary political history. In 2008, Nthe 240-year-old institution of monarchy—for long seen a

No place to hide
Sep 29, 2020

No place to hide

Power won’t leave India alone, even if Indians claim to be disinterested in power

Obama: Lessons on Caste and Babur
Nov 06, 2010

Obama: Lessons on Caste and Babur

It might be an interesting detail for a US President who has come up the Civil Rights ladder. The role caste politics in India has played in boosting Indo-US ties in recent years.

Outer space and international security
Dec 28, 2019

Outer space and international security

The realm of space is “fluid, contested and driven by politics.”

Overcoming challenges to India-US defence cooperation
Oct 06, 2015

Overcoming challenges to India-US defence cooperation

Against the backdrop of increasing Chinese territorial assertiveness, the logic of geopolitics dictates that both India and the U.S. have vital interests in strengthening defense cooperation. In June, US and India signed a 10-year defence framework agreement.

Pakistan General Elections 2018: What’s at Stake?
Jul 17, 2018

Pakistan General Elections 2018: What’s at Stake?

In well-functioning democracies where those who lose elections live to fight another day, the forthcoming general elections in Pakistan is a battle for survival for many of the main political players in the country. To begin with, the brazen intervention by the military establishment in the political process has left the polls little credibility. In many ways, the elections will set the future trajectory of politics in Pakistan. While the deck se

Pakistan in Yemen
Mar 31, 2015

Pakistan in Yemen

With Saudi Arabia now so fearful of a rising Iran, it is quite clearly Pakistan's payback time. And Yemen could mark the beginning of a new and more significant phase in Pakistan's involvement in the security politics of the Gulf.

Panchsheel 2014
Jul 04, 2014

Panchsheel 2014

As an increasingly powerful China seeks to reorder Asia, Delhi must firmly locate China's Panchsheel campaign in a clinical assessment of Asia's rapidly evolving geopolitics and its consequences for Indian security. China is doing what rising powers, including the US, have done before. But Delhi appears a long way from developing an appropriate strategy to cope with Asia's new power play.

Paradiplomacy in India: Evolution and operationalisation
Aug 24, 2017

Paradiplomacy in India: Evolution and operationalisation

Paradiplomacy as it is conducted by sub-state governments introduces the idea of decentralisation of political power to make regional governments prominent actors in the international sphere. This paper examines the scope for subnational diplomacy in India, as the country seeks to appreciate the significance of federalism and regionalism in promoting local interests, as well as identity, in current international politics. Regional governments ope

Patronage leaves us powerless
Aug 09, 2012

Patronage leaves us powerless

Get away from the barter system of vote bank politics. Politicians need to rise above petty politics and show they haven't got feet of Vernacular clay. This will be the first step to prove to the world that we are a mature democracy.

Post-poll, BJP need to tread carefully in J-K
Dec 30, 2014

Post-poll, BJP need to tread carefully in J-K

Given its unique position, the politics and governance of J&K have always depended on the good relations between the governments in New Delhi and Srinagar. When they have been disrupted, as happened in the 1983-87 period, it was disastrous for the state and the country.

President Asif Ali Zardari: Can he measure up to the challenges?
Sep 09, 2008

President Asif Ali Zardari: Can he measure up to the challenges?

Asif Ali Zardari, 53, the 12th President of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is not new to politics, nor is he to the Machiavellian twists and turns necessary to survive in the intensely fratricidal politics of Pakistan where the final shots are called by the Chief of Army Staff.

President Nasheed wrests the initiative
Oct 29, 2010

President Nasheed wrests the initiative

Politics is no more news in Maldives. Even media commentaries these days focus on culture and other aspects even as the news columns take time off to report more on crimes like abuse of foreigners by resort employees and the like.

Priorities for a Technology Foreign Policy for India
May 11, 2023

Priorities for a Technology Foreign Policy for India

On 1 January 2020, the Ministry of External Affairs announced the establishment under its wing of the New, Emerging and Strategic Technologies (NEST) division. This marked a welcome addition to the government’s organisational capacities in an era increasingly being characterised by the interplay of technology, trade, security and geopolitics. This brief outlines the global and domestic context that will surround the operations of the NEST divis

Prospects of Building A New Nepal
Dec 07, 2006

Prospects of Building A New Nepal

The Observer Research Foundation hosted an exciting, in-depth interaction with Nepalese Maoist leaders Prachanda and Baburam Bhattarai on November 18, 2006. Addressing their first international audience together from the same platform, the Maoist leaders put before the distinguished gathering, which included political leaders, former diplomats and members of the academia and media, their vision about a new Nepal which they would like to bui

Qatar’s Stakes in an Evolving West Asia
Aug 17, 2023

Qatar’s Stakes in an Evolving West Asia

In November 2022, Qatar will become the first state in West Asia and the Arab world to host the coveted FIFA football World Cup. Doha’s winning the hosting rights has brought the country—home to only 2.9 million people, more than eight out of every ten of whom are foreign workers—out of the shadow of its large, and more powerful regional neighbours such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This brief views thi

Rand Paul's Libertarian view of the world
Jul 08, 2015

Rand Paul's Libertarian view of the world

Now thanks partly to Paul's bid for the Republican nomination, Libertarianism has become popular in American politics again. Tens of millions of Americans today are fiscally conservative, socially tolerant and sceptical of American military intervention abroad.

Reading the U.S. Elections
Nov 10, 2004

Reading the U.S. Elections

The current conventional wisdom now being voiced among American analysts is that the 2004 election is evidence of a conservative revolution in American politics. According to this view, the U.S. is now in the midst of a long-term shift to the right and the creation of an enduring Republican majority, akin to the Democratic majority coalition forged during the 1930s and the New Deal by Franklin Roosevelt.

Regional integration
Aug 30, 2018

Regional integration

India will have to carefully navigate the emerging regional geopolitics in BIMSTEC

Reimagining the Anglo-India partnership
Apr 29, 2021

Reimagining the Anglo-India partnership

Despite challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, India–UK ties remain unfettered to harness new strategic convergences in sync with contemporary realities