To assess the outcome of the fourth BRICS summit at New Delhi on March 29, a look is required at the genesis of this grouping, its value for its members and the extent to which it can influence international decision-making. The origin of BRICS li
India has taken a substantial step forward in acquiring a credible nuclear deterrent capability with its successful Agni V test on April 19. The security threats to India are almost unique in that we have two nuclear neighbours who have had military
The outcome of President Zardari’s unplanned private visit has been largely what any objective observer would have anticipated. It could not have broken new ground as it was not preceded by any intensive preparatory diplomacy. The India-Pakistan
It was a private visit, but it was unavoidably given an official colour as the Indian prime minister could not have ignored the Pakistani president's presence on Indian soil without creating a misunderstanding. Observers would have conjectured tha
ARMS PRCHASES ARE POLITICAL IN NATURE AND NOT SIMPLE COMMERCIAL TRANSACTIONS The decision on the MMRCA contract has provoked a discussion on the degree of strategic thinking that goes into arms purchases by the Indian government. India is one of t
US-India Geo-political Convergence? Is there a geo-political coherence in the India-US partnership that can be delineated on the ground by tracing a curving line across the globe or a sizable part of it that connects points of convergence? Where w
Many arguments can be made against our decision to vote against Sri Lanka in the Human Rights Council in Geneva, a decision highly questionable from the foreign policy point of view. Domestic compulsions seem to have outweighed foreign policy conside
Riaz Mohammed Khan’s book “Afghanistan and Pakistan” adds to the already numerous books available on the shelves on the linked Afghanistan-Pakistan situation. The Taliban-takeover of Afghanistan, the 9/11 terror attack that provoked US military
When the street rose against the entrenched regimes of Tunisia and Egypt and toppled them there was enthusiastic references to an “Arab Spring”. The nature of the political upsurge in these two countries was defined by western observers from thei
Vladimir Putin’s clear victory in the Russian presidential election, garnering about 64 per cent of the votes — close to the 70 per cent he won in the 2004 election — suggests that his overall standing with the electorate at large has not been