COMMENTARIES
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What�s on Pakistan-based Militants� Minds?
Rajeshwari Krishnamurthy · 16 Apr, 2015 · #4863 · Commentary
On 15 March, terrorists mounted suicide attacks on two churches in Lahore, Pakistan. While this was not the first attack on an institution or individuals related to minority communities in the country, this particular attack was indicative of an...
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China and the Indian Ocean Region
The Geopolitics of Chinese Investments in Sri Lanka
Teshu Singh · 13 Apr, 2015 · #4862 · Commentary
Chinese investments in Sri Lanka are can be primarily found in three sectors: trade, infrastructure and defence. Infrastructural investments such as the Colombo-Katunayake Expressway, the National Theatre of Performing Arts, and the Bandaranaike...
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The Strategist
Why ‘Global Zero’ is Less of an Illusion
Vice Admiral Vijay Shankar · 13 Apr, 2015 · #4861 · Commentary · Column
Since August 1945 when two nuclear weapons destroyed the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and unimaginable horrors visited over 199,000 of its inhabitants, the world has lived with the implicit fear of widespread annihilation. During th...
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Spotlight West Asia
Yemen: Why the Current Strife will Continue
Ranjit Gupta · 06 Apr, 2015 · #4860 · Commentary · Column
Soon after its formal establishment in 1932, Saudi Arabia invaded Yemen and absorbed the Yemeni provinces of Asir and Najran, in 1934. Since then, Saudi Arabia has tried to influence internal political dynamics by using a ‘carrots and stic...
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Dateline Colombo
Politics of Correctness: The Legacy of Lee Kuan Yew
Asanga Abeyagoonasekera · 06 Apr, 2015 · #4859 · Commentary · Column
“I always tried to be correct, not politically correct."
Lee Kuan Yew
Drawing open the curtains to what is the festive month of April in many parts of Asia and the world, on 02 April, one hundred forty two students were slaught...
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Iran Nuclear Deal: Lessons from North Korea
Vyjayanti Raghavan · 06 Apr, 2015 · #4858 · Commentary
After over a decade-long and torturous negotiation, Iran and the US reached an agreement over the former’s nuclear program. There has been some light applause from the international community but that is all. Only US President Barack Obama...
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East Asia Compass
South Korea: US THAAD or Chinese AIIB?
Dr Sandip Kumar Mishra · 06 Apr, 2015 · #4857 · Commentary · Column
It is not an easy choice for South Korea to decide about participating in two initiatives, one spearheaded by the US and the other by China. The US insists on South Korea joining its Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, which is s...
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Looking East
Myanmar: Democracy in Brakes
Wasbir Hussain · 06 Apr, 2015 · #4856 · Commentary · Column
Signals emanating from Myanmar indicate the country’s semi-civilian government is pursuing democracy with the brakes on. The brutal crackdown of a student protest by the authorities in early March has once again brought the spotlight back ...
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Pakistan: MQM Under Siege
Rana Banerji · 04 Apr, 2015 · #4855 · Commentary
Not since Pakistan’s former Interior Minister, late Nasrullah Khan Babar’s, crackdown in mid-1995, has the Mohajir/ Muttahida Quami Movement – Altaf (MQM- A) been subjected to such a relentless siege by the Pakistan Rangers and...
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India-Nepal Power Trade Agreement: Challenges before Opportunities
Kalpana Jha · 24 Mar, 2015 · #4854 · Commentary
The Power Trade Agreement (PTA) signed between Nepal and India in September 2014 was much touted as the most significant achievement of the 18th SAARC summit. This agreement has been perceived as a major advance in not just addressing the increa...
