COMMENTARIES
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Nuke Street
India's Nuclear Capable Cruise Missile: The Nirbhay Test
Sheel kant Sharma · 22 Oct, 2014 · #4713 · Commentary · Column
India’s test of the nuclear capable cruise missile Nirbhay last week was immensely significant in two ways. First, it marked the culmination of DRDO’s efforts of not only the past decade but also the ambitions of its heads. It was in...
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Indus-tan
Pakistan: The Futility of Internationalising Kashmir
Sushant Sareen · 22 Oct, 2014 · #4712 · Commentary · Column
Ideally, Pakistani efforts to internationalise the Kashmir issue should draw big yawns, not just from India but also the international community. After all this is a script that has played out before, and except for a short period in the early 1...
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North Korea: Kim Jong-un and Myth Making
Ruhee Neog · 22 Oct, 2014 · #4711 · Commentary
The Supreme Leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-un, disappeared from the public eye for six weeks beginning September 2014, which created an uproar in the international community. Apparently, regular sightings of Jong-un going about his usual busine...
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Indian Mujahideen: A Vehicle for Hire for Al Qaeda?
Saneya Arif · 22 Oct, 2014 · #4710 · Commentary
The video message circulated by al Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri in early September 2014 announcing his intention to raise the flag of jihad in the Indian subcontinent raised several questions regarding the capacity of the organisation, independ...
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Islamic State: What is Drawing the European Muslims?
Tuva Julie Engebrethsen Smith · 21 Oct, 2014 · #4709 · Commentary
The Islamic State (IS) has demonstrated a remarkable capability in enticing young Muslims from a variety of European countries into the battlefields of Iraq and Syria. These foreign fighters (FFs) have made numerous headlines, with pictures of t...
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Umbrella Revolution
China's End Game in Hong Kong
Teshu Singh · 21 Oct, 2014 · #4708 · Commentary
China has two Special Administrative Regions (SAR) - Hong Kong and Macau - that were reunified with the mainland in 1997 and 1999 respectively. Both SARs are a part of China under a unique system famously known as ‘one country, two systems...
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Big Picture
When Xi Met Modi: Juxtaposing China and India
Varun Sahni · 21 Oct, 2014 · #4707 · Commentary · Column
During Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to India in September, much was made of the personal rapport and chemistry between him and his host, Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Chinese investment worth US$20 billion, although a fraction of t...
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West Asia
The US, Syria and Iraq: The Success of Airstrikes So Far
KP Fabian · 20 Oct, 2014 · #4706 · Commentary
The battle for Kobane, the Kurdish town on the Syrian side of the border with Turkey, is still raging, though indications are that the US’ airstrikes have so far failed to make a decisive impact and reverse the advance of the Islamic State...
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Red Affairs
Naxalites and the Might of a Fragile Revolution
Bibhu Prasad Routray · 20 Oct, 2014 · #4705 · Commentary · Column
On the morning of 18 October 2014, Shiv Kumar, a personnel belonging to the Chhattisgarh Armed Police was pulled out of a passenger bus in Sukma district by a group of Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) cadres and killed. Kumar was ill...
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Regional Economy
Regional Economic Architecture: Is India Ready?
Amita Batra · 20 Oct, 2014 · #4704 · Commentary · Column
Two mega regional trade agreements – the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) – are currently under negotiation in Asia. The RCEP, launched at the East Asia Summit in November 201...
