The Indian Navy has had a big week. The reactor in its first indigenous nuclear submarine, the Arihant, went critical on Saturday, and its first indigenous aircraft carrier, theVikrant, was formally unveiled today. It’s long been assumed that one of the primary tasks of the rapidly-modernizing service and its expanding fleet is to apply pressure to China’s Sea […]
Contrary to some observations, the maritime realm is not a zero-sum theatre where Indian and Chinese core interests clash. The geopolitical reality is that China’s SLOCs traverse near Indian naval deployments with more than 85 per cent of Chinese oil imports flowing through Indian Ocean sea lanes. Similarly, more than 50 per cent of India’s […]
Indian strategists place their greatest hopes for influencing Asia’s security dynamic on naval power. India‘s annual naval spending grew from $181 million in 1988 to $6.78 billion in 2012; the navy is now a professional and capable force that, in combination with the United States and other allies, could potentially balance China in the South China Sea. Read Here […]
India’s drive to develop maritime forces that can protect its coast and project power into its surrounding waters is one of the biggest defense stories of recent years, but one that doesn’t grab the headlines like its ongoing fast jet acquisitions. But the numbers don’t lie: in 1988 the navy’s annual spend was INR10 billion ($181 […]
The old saying that a developing country is at a crossroads, whether it’s India or Indonesia, is especially tempting when it comes to India’s armed forces. Decades of underinvestment, corruption, bureaucratic ineptitude and hazy strategic thinking have left the country with a decidedly mixed bag of military capabilities. Read Here – The Diplomat
I am glad to have an opportunity to address the readers of one of the most influential Indian newspapers — The Hindu. As my visit to New Delhi is beginning, I would like to outline approaches to further development of the strategic partnership between India and Russia. This year marked the 65 anniversary of diplomatic relations […]
Is the Indian Navy about to start mixing it up with China on the high seas? For years, as the Chinese have modernized their naval fleet, Indian strategists have worried about what that might mean for India’s political and economic interests. A recent book by C. Raja Mohan, one of India’s most influential strategic thinkers, explores the […]
In the run-up to the U.S presidential polls, when bilateral diplomatic activity was expected to taper off, South Block logged as many as a dozen delegations from Washington between September 25 and end-October. Four of these were headed by cabinet minister-level officials. Even just a couple of days before the Americans went to the polls, […]
The whole world is watching China‘s confrontations in the South China Sea and the East China Sea—but India is watching with particular concern. India has no territorial claims here per se, but one Indian official recently said that the South China Sea could be seen “as the antechamber of the Indian Ocean,” given the flow […]
looking beyond borders 