Someone recently asked me if the Naxalites could be considered a threat to India’s nuclear arsenal. My answer was a potential threat, but a highly remote one. The Naxalite problem in India has grown exponentially over the last few years, and they have become one of India’s biggest security risks. The recent attacks on security […]
Even as Indian treads the ‘dialogue-with-Pakistan’ path cautiously, Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao has reiterated the singular importance of dialogue between the two countries. Speaking on an Afghanistan-Pakistan-India Trialogue, she stressed the need to make boundaries “irrelevant” and find “creative solutions” to problems. Ironically, she failed to spell out these creative solutions even as she […]
On June 7th Prime Minister Manmohan Singh addressed the convocation ceremony at the Sher-e-Kashmir University in Srinagar. The thrust of visits by India’s various Prime Ministers to Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) primarily revolve around issues of terrorism, peace talks with separatists, development packages and omissions and commissions of Pakistan. P.M. Manmohan Singh’s recent visit addressed these […]
The Obama administration proffered a two-part message at last week’s U.S.-India Strategic Dialogue meeting in Washington. The first part is that, after more than a year of treading water in bilateral affairs, the administration is re-focusing its attention on New Delhi. This signal, which was repeated loudly by U.S. officials starting with President Obama, received […]
China recently announced that it had reached an agreement with Pakistan for the construction of two new nuclear reactors there. These reactors would be built at the Chasma site already designated for Chasma III and IV. The first two reactors were built by China after a 1985 agreement with Pakistan regarding the same. The setting […]
The meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Obama on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit last week, seems to have produced positive results for India. The US ambassador to India, Tim Roemer will be travelling to Afghanistan to view first-hand the “critical” work being done there by India. He told the Times News Network, “India’s […]
The Nuclear Security Summit has opened on a positive note. Ukraine has volunteered to get rid of its stockpile of highly enriched uranium. The bold and applaudable decision by Ukraine is sure to help global non-proliferation efforts and bring optimism into the Summit. However, it is sad that Pakistan was given the opportunity to be the lead speaker and demand a nuclear deal from the […]
Amnesty International appoints its first Indian Secretary General: Salil Shetty will take over as the new Secretary General of Amnesty International in June 2010. Shetty has served as the Director of the UN’s Millenium Campaign for the past six years. According to Peter Pack, the chair of Amnesty International’s Executive Committee, “As we approach our […]
India celebrates its 60th Republic Day today. It is to this day in 1950 that the Indian Constitution came into force after its independence from Britain in August 1947. The Republic Day celebrations are an opportunity to display the nation’s cultural diversity, military might and other achievements to its people and the world through a […]
Former Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon will be Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s new National Security Advisor (NSA). The current NSA, M K Narayanan will step down after five years in office, and take over as the Governor of the state of West Bengal. The new appointment comes at a time when the Home Minister, P […]
If you know me or have been reading this blog with any regularity, you know I’m a skeptic. Not about climate change but about China. I made an analysis several years back that, in retrospect, seems mistaken. I perceived that the economic and political pressures of the liberal democracies would push and pull China toward […]
As India steps into a new decade it seems ready to take on the world. But this process will not be without some big challenges. While terrorism and internal security are crucial concerns, sustaining the rapid economic growth and making India easier and safer to do business with are also huge challenges. With the India-US […]
Fire at Bhabha Atomic Research Center (BARC): A fire broke out in a laboratory at India’s premier nuclear research facility yesterday. Though no danger of radiation due to the accident was reported, two research students were killed in the fire. The cause of the fire is unknown. Earlier this month three people were arrested for […]
If you play poker you know that all the players have to ante up with a stake before each new deal. You have to “feed the kitty” – or you don’t play. Perhaps not coincidentally, parties that have an interest in a particular project, enterprise or, in the case of COP 15, addressing the looming […]
Bangladesh is becoming enmeshed in the broader regional strategy by which political Islamists in Bangladesh and Pakistan might bring down secular governments and establish a wider Islamic emirate. I want to propose that Bangladesh has been chosen as the alternative ground from which Pakistani militants will launch attacks into India. Before I get to […]