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A space monkey and the art of rocket diplomacy
Feb 15, 2013

A space monkey and the art of rocket diplomacy

Iran is being treated more like North Korea, even though it is one of the world's great civilisations, with major historical and scientific achievements. And, as anyone who has deeply analysed the personalities of Ahmadinejad and Kim Jong Un knows, they don't look like one another. Or like one another.

A special task for India’s first full-time woman FM
Jul 04, 2019

A special task for India’s first full-time woman FM

In the coming budget, concrete ideas of increasing women’s participation in the workforce should be included. There has to be an increased allocatio

A stable government at the Centre after long!
May 17, 2014

A stable government at the Centre after long!

For the first time in 30 years, Elections-2014 has thrown up a decisive Parliament. The Treasury Bench does not have to do number-crunching all the time, to push policy initiatives, legislative initiatives and even budgets - which have more often than not been passed in the midst of din and dust.

A step back from democracy
Aug 07, 2010

A step back from democracy

The speculation regarding General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani's possible extension came to an end last week. Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani in a rather dramatic fashion announced a full term extension for General Kayani on national television.

A Stocktaking of BRICS Performance in Climate Action
Feb 14, 2022

A Stocktaking of BRICS Performance in Climate Action

Global temperature rise is set to exceed 1.5°C compared to pre-industrial levels by 2100. Efforts to ramp up climate action must be accompanied by an assessment of countries' existing strategies to combat climate change. At the same time, it is crucial to determine the effectiveness of multilateral institutions in mitigating climate change by galvanising member countries in this direction. This report presents a comparative analysis based on fiv

A strange Budget
Feb 18, 2014

A strange Budget

The Interim Budget presented by Finance Minister P Chidambaram was a strange one. It contained much praise for the ruling coalition UPA's entire tenure, peppered with some disappointments.

A Strange Country by the Name of Iran
Aug 05, 2005

A Strange Country by the Name of Iran

Iranian civilisation is heresy-prone. Heresy is indicative of a questioning mind. Throughout history, individuals and movements have emerged in Iran to invoke the moral imperative and disrupt the status quo. The most recent events sustain this characteristic of the Iranian personality. Paradoxes abound in the vote in the June presidential election: it was anti-establishment, not anti-regime, anti-clerical but affirmative of the principles of the

A strange duality casts a shadow over elections
May 07, 2019

A strange duality casts a shadow over elections

Despite one-fourth of people living away from where they were born, no arrangements exist for domestic work migrants to vote from where they work. But enthusiasm abounds for facilitating NRIs to do so.

A Sufi message from a Pakistani President
Apr 10, 2012

A Sufi message from a Pakistani President

At a time when Rahul Gandhi and his team are wondering how to win friends and influence people, the Sufis offer an excellent model. For the model to gain traction, the first requirement is a message which can be simply put across.

A Survey of India-US Defence Cooperation
Mar 15, 2024

A Survey of India-US Defence Cooperation

Manoj Joshi, “A Survey of India-US Defence Cooperation,” ORF Special Report No. 224, March 2024, Observer Research Foundation.

A thaw in Saudi-Iran relations?
Jun 02, 2014

A thaw in Saudi-Iran relations?

Saudi Arabia recently extended an invitation to Iranian Foreign Minister, indicating towards a possible thaw in relations. Is this shift in Riyadh's stand because of a change in US-Iran relations and the positive reception of Iran's overtures by the other GCC States?

A time to lead
Apr 16, 2015

A time to lead

India must accept its own exceptionalism. It must thereafter understand how to establish it. India is in a position to shape cyberspace debates, but for that it will need to be flexible, propositional and present everywhere that internet governance is debated. Its strong and diverse contingent at The Hague is a good beginning.

A treaty in progress
Jul 31, 2012

A treaty in progress

The Arms Trade Treaty being an instrument impacting many countries, it is important for it to come into being through consensus. A treaty without support from major exporting and importing countries would undermine its very purpose.

A Trump-Putin summit is good news for India
Jul 16, 2018

A Trump-Putin summit is good news for India

A one-on-one Trump-Putin meeting being proposed by sections of the Trump Administration would be a big win for Putin who desperately wants recognition as a global statesman

A turbulent beginning to a new phase in Afghanistan
Sep 26, 2014

A turbulent beginning to a new phase in Afghanistan

A lack of legitimacy of the new leadership in Kabul in the eyes of the Afghan public could pose potential problems for it at a time when it is confronted with a number of challenges. This could be exploited by the Taliban as well.

A wasted gift
Aug 10, 2018

A wasted gift

India’s government recently announced a safeguard duty (SGD) on solar cells and modules from China (and Malaysia) starting with 25% in the first year. This decision does not only jeopardise the own renewable energy targets but also harm the own economy. Why not let pay China for India's energy transition?

A year of lassitude
Dec 28, 2012

A year of lassitude

India, today, has the heft to influence the geopolitical dynamic around it. In pushing for improved relations with one, India's ability to enhance ties with the other two will significantly improve. Masterly inactivity, on the other hand, would surely make India lose ground with all the three.

A ‘Zeitenwende’ in the India-Germany relationship
Mar 08, 2023

A ‘Zeitenwende’ in the India-Germany relationship

Amidst geopolitical shifts and multipolarity, New Delhi’s ties with Berlin could be vital in shaping a new global order

A. Q. Khan: The Ghost that Continues to Haunt
Dec 21, 2004

A. Q. Khan: The Ghost that Continues to Haunt

Dr.A. Q. Khan, the self-styled father of Pakistan's atomic bomb, is back in the headlines following a statement disseminated by the National Council of Resistance of Iran, a group opposed to the present regime in Teheran, on November 17, 2004, that between 1994 and 1996 (Mrs.Benazir Bhutto was then in power) Dr. Khan gave Iran a Chinese-developed nuclear warhead design.

Aadhaar: Underutilised in promoting preventive and public health
Nov 16, 2023

Aadhaar: Underutilised in promoting preventive and public health

India can craft a holistic public and preventive health policy paradigm by using Aadhaar to cultivate health-positive behaviours

AAP gets a second chance... But can the party build on it?
Feb 11, 2015

AAP gets a second chance... But can the party build on it?

The Aam Aadmi Party's victory in 67 out of 70 Delhi Assembly seats has simply blown the established parties like the BJP and the Congress out of the water. It has inflicted by far the most crushing defeat to its opposition in independent India's electoral history.

AAP's arrival signals urban discourse in politics
Dec 10, 2013

AAP's arrival signals urban discourse in politics

There has clearly been a Modi effect in the assembly polls, but but whether or not there is a Modi wave in 2014 will depend on just how the BJP uses the momentum it has now gathered. And the stunning performance of AAP in Delhi signals the arrival of the urban discourse into national politics and the breakdown of identity politics of yore.

Aarogya Setu App and its many conflicts
Jun 06, 2020

Aarogya Setu App and its many conflicts

As India still does not have a Personal Data Protection law in place, it would be unwise to expand the scope of Aarogya Setu far beyond its original p

Abandon ad hocism, focus sharp on the Maoist menace
Apr 30, 2012

Abandon ad hocism, focus sharp on the Maoist menace

The trends emerging from Odisha and Chhattisgarh following the latest kidnappings of popular officials confirm to a certain global pattern - desperation leads to unpopular acts. These measures suggest they become considerably weaker and are making desperate attempts to wage easy propaganda.

Abe in Delhi
Jan 23, 2014

Abe in Delhi

In inviting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to be the chief guest of this year's Republic Day celebrations, Delhi has underlined the special importance it attaches to East Asia. Abe is the fourth East Asian leader to be part of the annual event in the last five years.

Abe wants decisive responses to China's ambitions near Japan waters
Sep 24, 2013

Abe wants decisive responses to China's ambitions near Japan waters

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe believes that his country needs quicker and more decisive responses to China's increasing maritime ambitions in waters near Japan, according to two Japanese security experts, Dr Marie Izuyama and Dr Hikaru Yamashita.

Abe's African Safari: Will it pay off?
Feb 10, 2014

Abe's African Safari: Will it pay off?

At the beginning of the year, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made a trip to Africa. His renewed engagement in Africa is seen as a part of his broader effort to put an assertive stamp on Japan's foreign policy. Will his African Safari pay off? Can Japan have the same amount of influence in the continent as its arch rival China?

Abe's and Modi's policies on Indo-Pacific becoming concurrent: Japanese Ambassador
Oct 18, 2014

Abe's and Modi's policies on Indo-Pacific becoming concurrent: Japanese Ambassador

The idea of a united Indo-Pacific put forward by t he Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is becoming increasingly concurrent with the foreign policy initiatives of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to the Ambassador of Japan to India, Mr. Takeshi Yagi.

Abe's decision could mark a turning point in security policy
Jul 09, 2014

Abe's decision could mark a turning point in security policy

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's recent decision to reinterpret the Japanese constitution to exercise the right of collective self-defence is truly significant and could mark a turning point in Japan's security policy in the coming years.

Abe's defence
Jul 21, 2015

Abe's defence

It's not often that one sees leaders take risks in the pursuit of a political conviction. Abe, a rare exception, has been steadfast in his determination to remove the extraordinary restraints on Japan's military imposed by its post-war constitution. Abe wants Japan to be a "normal" power, 70 years after World War II.

Abe’s difficult role in the US-Iran tangle
Jun 21, 2019

Abe’s difficult role in the US-Iran tangle

In trying to maintain a strategic alliance with the US and the Middle East, Japan seems to be standing at a crossroad.

Above all summits, it is calm. German elections between crisis and stagnation
Sep 22, 2017

Above all summits, it is calm. German elections between crisis and stagnation

Despite most parties having differences over the EU, India could benefit from a stronger German engagement with Europe.

Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi and the rise of the ISIS
Jul 07, 2014

Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi and the rise of the ISIS

Baghdadi, who has led the ISIS since 2010, has acquired significant financial and military power and influence among Sunni foreign fighters. But the ISIS's violent and extremist methods have alienated Sunni militias and Baghdadi's unwillingness to share power is likely to limit the group's territorial expansion.

Access to clean cooking fuels in India: The visible hand of policy
Mar 13, 2024

Access to clean cooking fuels in India: The visible hand of policy

By 2030, only 77 percent are expected to have clean cooking fuel, leaving 1.9 billion with traditional sources of fuels

Access to green technology only way to reduce to carbon emissions: Minister
Oct 21, 2015

Access to green technology only way to reduce to carbon emissions: Minister

Admitting that the government's 'Make in India' initiative will result in increase in carbon emissions as it focuses on manufacturing, and industries, India's Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Prakash Javedkar emphasises the need for developing countries to get cheaper access to green technology on humanitarian grounds, notwithstanding Intellectual Property Rights.

Access to Yuan loans:  A wise decision
Sep 24, 2011

Access to Yuan loans: A wise decision

India's decision to allow corporates to borrow yuan denominated loans is guided by many factors. There is a big demand for Yuan loans from companies who are importing equipment and machinery from China for infrastructure development.

Accountable Tech: क्या जवाबदेही से जुड़े भारत के तौर-तरीक़ों को अमेरिका अपनाएगा?
Sep 13, 2022

Accountable Tech: क्या जवाबदेही से जुड़े भारत के तौर-तरीक़ों को अमेरिका अपनाएगा?

डिजिटल इंडिया उस बदलाव का शुरुआती बिंदु बनने जा रहा है जो

Achieving net-zero through just transition
Nov 12, 2021

Achieving net-zero through just transition

To ensure an inclusive transition, India will have to introduce policy interventions to cushion the states and communities who will be impacted by the

Act of last resort
Sep 01, 2004

Act of last resort

Why does Manipur continue to be on fire? Civil and human rights activists, social scientists and even the media would have you believe that the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) is primarily responsible for this. Is that so? Why is this act necessary? What does it imply?

Addressing Dhaka
Jun 24, 2014

Addressing Dhaka

Bangladesh offers a rare strategic opportunity to transform the geopolitics of the subcontinent. A comprehensive partnership with Dhaka might be the key that will eventually open the door to a productive engagement with Pakistan.