Ever since Independence, peace and stability have been treasured luxuries in the Indian states of Nagaland and Manipur. In the last two decades, however, while peace talks may have produced little in the way of progress, ceasefire agreements with the various warring groups have at least provided a relative peace. Read Here – The Diplomat
Once again, a blogger in Bangladesh has been murdered…These violent incidents are indeed what they are: fundamentalist attacks on free expression. But there is a deeper story, going back to the unfinished arguments over the war of independence in 1971. Is Bangladesh secular or religious? Is it Muslim or Bengali? These questions have become linked […]
The talk of the town in Dhaka is the forthcoming visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 6. The enthusiasm generated by the impending trip is rare and can only be compared with that experienced during the visit of Indira Gandhi in 1972. She was welcomed effusively because of the support she gave Bangladesh […]
Diplomacy and bilateral exigency triumphed over politics and emotions as the Narendra Modi government steered the passage of the Bill that ratified and allows the operationalisation of the 1974 Land Boundary Agreement (LBA) between India and Bangladesh. In a rare show of unanimity, the Bill was passed by both Houses of Parliament, a move that […]
China’s plans for a Maritime Silk Route – starting from Mainland China, passing through the contested South China Sea, and then the Indian Ocean to Africa and West Asia – is seen as a strategic threat by India. Besides, it has made forays, or is making them, into all three waterfronts of India – the […]
How did India and Pakistan arrive at this equilibrium? The answer starts, of course, in Kashmir, which has always been the primary point of contention between the two countries. Unfortunately, the Kashmir question is unlikely to be answered soon. While territorial disputes between states are usually bitter and persistent – states usually perceive competition over […]
Long accused of remaining a mute spectator to China’s expanding interests in the region — and the astounding success of Beijing’s “maritime silk road” proposal — India will soon launch its own Project Mausam, a transnational initiative meant to revive its ancient maritime routes and cultural linkages with countries in the region. Read Here – […]
It is perhaps too soon to try and discern a distinctive “Modi doctrine.” But the wider arc of foreign and strategic policy is gradually coming into focus. The government’s early initiatives have been stamped with the Prime Minister’s style, yet the real challenges lie ahead. Read Here – The Hindu
India took a step toward tighter ties with Bangladesh this month in surrendering its four-decade claim to a swathe of the Bay of Bengal about the size of Lake Ontario, opting to heed a United Nations-backed ruling…The decision provides a contrast with China, which declines to acknowledge any UN jurisdiction in its dispute with the […]
The SAARC summit in Kathmandu this November will see all countries give another push to SAFTA, the free trade agreement, while they will discuss cooperation on everything from power distribution and roadways to the welfare of overseas workers. At a book launch in his house, Mr. Modi told journalists that “What happens in the countries […]
looking beyond borders 