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If the War on Terror-2.0 is to be carried out only by drones and the US/NATO Air-forces, one can be certain that the 'Islamic State' will retain control over its territory in Iraq and Syria for a long time to come.

Does Obama really intend to defeat, disrupt and dismantle the ISIS terror structure or will he simply guide them away from Iraq and Turkish borders towards Damascus.

Defence structures around the world are seeing a technological upheaving as new and emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) are being added to military arsenals. However, military AI largely lacks precision and is often developed without any threat-modelling which takes gender into account, examples of which are already being seen in civilian applications of AI. Translated into a conflict environment, deploying such AI systems cou

Indian PM Narendra Modi this week makes his maiden visit as Prime Minister to Russia, one of India's closest strategic partners. This seeming delay in travelling to Russia may surprise some, given that the Prime Minister has travelled to almost all the major powers as well as most of India's immediate neighbourhood.

Out of the 660,000 habitations in India with a population of 100 or more, only 33,000 have a commercial bank branch. That's approximately one branch for every 20 habitations.

India's self-image needed a re-boot. This rebooting of India's 1.3 billion aspirations was conducted by the Prime Minister on the 15th of August last year. He did it with characteristic simplicity, by a simple call for "Make in India". Financial inclusion is the building block for unleashing the creative capabilities of this country.

In many African countries—some of the most unbanked areas in the world—digital banking applications are redefining what it is to bank in economies with shallow penetration of the formal banking sector, representing an innovative force that is breaking new ground in the long-standing challenge of financial inclusion. This brief explores the emerging world of fintech in the context of Africa, outlining why financial technology applications are

Focusing on financing sustainable development, in India and elsewhere, ORF organised a conference that explored the future of global financial architecture for development and highlighted the difference between financing and implementation.

As the world confronts multiple challenges which are intricately connected, our path for development stands at a crucial juncture. In the context of the embroiling polycrisis, progress on the sustainable development goals (SDGs) has been steady but fragile with major and persistent challenges. Financing for Agenda 2030 has emerged as a major bottleneck with several developing economies, especially the least developed countries (LDCs), low-income

Climate change has emerged amongst India’s most formidable challenges to sustained GDP growth. To accelerate the implementation of the country’s commitments under the Paris Agreement and advance its progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals, finance is key. India needs to develop a comprehensive strategy and an integrated policy approach that aligns the country’s financial systems with the long-term needs of the economy while incor

India’s target of achieving 175 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2022 might appear ambitious, but it is crucial as it will have a positive impact on the country’s economic growth, energy security and the fight against climate change. Financing is emerging as the key challenge to this vision, slowing down the pace of growth; as of December 2019, over 50 percent of the 2022 target is yet to be achieved. This brief outlines India’s existing

Observer Research Foundation, in collaboration with BRIDGE TO INDIA and Solar Energy Society of India, organized a round-table discussion on "Financing the Solar Projects under JNNSM" on 9th Aug, 2011.

The existence of an embedded financial network of militant organisations in Bangladesh will seriously undermine the global effort to neutralise global terrorist networks entrenched in the region.

The Mullaperiyar dam agreement commits only the waters of the reservoir to Tamil Nadu. It does not guarantee supplies if the dam fell into disuse. So, a new agreement with commitments from Kerala for fixed supplies would be in Tamil Nadu's interest too.

Financing of infrastructure in India will remain a big problem despite the fact that the government has issued infrastructure bonds with tax incentives. Finding external finance is thus very important because the amounts required would be in billions of dollars.

India and Nepal have a long history of bilateral ties founded on connections of history, culture and religion, but their relationship is also beset by border conflicts. Although the two have managed to maintain their amiable relationship despite these differences, they both would benefit from finding a sustainable resolution. This brief highlights the efforts of both India and Nepal to resolve their border disputes. It recommends crucial

Over three years since the February 2021 coup in Myanmar, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has made little progress in helping resolve the crisis despite releasing a ‘Five-Point Consensus’ (5PC) in April 2021. The political crisis that followed the coup poses a challenge for the ASEAN, which must now deliberate on ensuring not only the early implementation of the 5PC but also whether, and how, it should continue to abide by

Accumulated non-performing assets (NPAs) in the Indian banking system, specifically in the public sector banks (PSBs), have adverse effects on credit disbursement. An increasing amount of bad loans have prompted the banks to be extra cautious, which has dried the credit channel. Two components are key in resolving the NPA problem: the immediate task of resolving the current accumulation in the PSBs, and the more important long-term task of ensuri

This paper analyses the patterns of virtual water trade (VWT) in agricultural products across the globe—VWT is the flow of water embedded in goods and services when they are traded—and the implications for alleviating water scarcity. Virtual water trade has been crucial in ameliorating water scarcity in virtual water-importing nations. At the same time, it has led to per capita water availability declining at a more rapid rate among the net v

As Delhi and Washington try to develop separate, special relationships with Beijing, there is a danger of misreading each other's intentions. Both India and the US want a secure Afghanistan and moderate Pakistan, but their approaches are not always in sync. An honest conversation between Joe Biden and the Indian leaders is critical at this juncture to prevent misperceptions from derailing India-US security cooperation in Asia.

The crucial factor that can help transform India-China bilateral is Modi himself. For the first time, the Chinese will interact with an Indian leader who can be politically strong in safeguarding India's sovereign interests, while at the same time being very welcoming in embracing China economically.

A dedicated fishing ministry would be able to deal with fishermen's problems holistically. India can thus begin her correctives at home, and without reference to either the neighbourhood seas or the nations that own them.

As China seeks to restore its credibility, creating tensions in the South China Sea should be the least of its priorities

With festivals fast approaching, time may be running out on Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa's self-set December deadline for her Government to host the third round of talks between fishers' representatives from the State and Sri Lanka.

Climate change is the biggest development challenge that would demand sustained, meaningful investments and collective efforts, rather than individual action. The Amazon CEO’s fund could set the foundation for much greater climate action.

US President Obama's top priority now is the crisis in West Asia, ISIS and Ebola, and India-US relations though, not inconsequential, is not on Washington's top priority now, according to Michael Kugelman of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Washington DC.

President Pervez Musharraf wrested power from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in a bloodless coup on October 12, 1999. In the five years since then, Pakistan has found itself increasingly enmeshed in sectarian violence, economic disaster, political collapse and diplomatic isolation.

For Modi, Nawaz Sharif's willingness to show up at the launch of his government is a political bonus. If Modi is luckier than Manmohan Singh and Atal Bihari Vajpayee, he might make some sustainable progress with Pakistan.

The new undercurrent is targeting the notion of big business itself. India is angry, and rightfully so. But is there any problem being solved by targeting large corporates for accumulating wealth? It is not solving the investment drought or the fiscal deficit. It is also not solving the critical challenge of making Indian MSMEs globally competitive, or of creating jobs for the 12 million youth entering the workforce every year.

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.

Now a mobile App for water management? And, the rapidly dropping price of wireless consumer technology such as WiFi and Bluetooth could turn these individual nodes into a data-rich network.

The devastating floods in Pakistan have not only destroyed lives and property across the country but also seriously undermined the civilian government's reputation among the people.

For Bangladesh and India, the imminent expiry of the deal presents opportunities for exploring the appropriate mechanisms for governing flows in river basins

With the SAARC summit only days away, the focus should be as much on re-positioning India, both in the regional and emerging global context, as on terrorism and security. Prime Minister Vajpayee set the mood a fortnight ago by referring to a 'common currency' for, and hydro-power cooperation among member-nations.

The Union Finance Minister surprised many with his social sector-centric budget. No one expected the Modi government to go for enhancing the MNREGA by Rs 5000 crore or to have a huge kitty of subsidies ($37 billion) aimed at the poor. There seems to be a vision towards giving India a universal social security system for all and especially the poor.

ore reassurance comes from the fiscal deficit target for 2018-19 set at 3.3 per cent of GDP.

In the Union Budget this year, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley seems to have tried his best to address the numerous issues being faced by the micro, small and medium enterprises and to invigorate them. For this industry, the way forward is through a reformist social programme which will aid the weak and inefficient enterprises.

India-Bangladesh relations got a major boost following the meeting between India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Bangladesh's Foreign Minister Abul Hasan Mohammad Ali this week.

Why have the north-eastern States remained poor? This has to be looked into carefully. It has to do with inadequacy or inefficacy of development programmes for income generation. Why have some states like Bihar, UP and Chhattisgarh also not done well?

Neither Admiral Joshi nor Sinha, or for that matter the PM, RM and the President are culpable for the accident, whose causes are yet to be determined. They may share constructive responsibility, though, whether it requires their resignation is another matter.

Given that pilot training is solely based on an individual's ability to afford it, and his selection by airlines dependent not just on an assessment of his capabilities but also the question of supply and demand, we can be fairly certain that unless this aspect is given due consideration, incidents like that of Germanwings will continue to plague us.