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Vaccine hesitancy among women adds to the risks to economic recovery by prolonging the pandemic.

New Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's emphasis on political moderation and ending Iran's isolation is drawing attention to the potential reconciliation between Tehran and some of its Arab Gulf neighbours. He has also raised hopes for a productive engagement between Tehran and the West.

Observer Research Foundation in collaboration with the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung, Berlin organised a conference on "Fragmentation in a Democracy: The Role of Social Movements and the Media". Here is a report.

FOR all those following the developments in Nepal, the King¿s coup, has not come as a surprise. Notable, however, is the sweep and sting of the King¿s action.

With a new king in power, this paper looks at royal politics in Saudi Arabia and identifies topical domestic and regional challenges from the Saudi perspective.

The Rules-Based Order (RBO) underpins the global maritime trading and security system. A subject of growing discussion and debate in strategic studies circles, it is seen by many as a prerequisite for seaborne trade and commerce, and a crucial factor in formulating national security policy. While many Asian powers have a shared understanding of the principles of maritime conduct, regional states have tended to situate the RBO within the framework

Instead of shutting down its jihadi factories ten years ago, Pakistan's leaders nurtured them selectively and today, their proteges have come to haunt them. They can still be shut down, but will need an honest Pakistani appreciation of its predicament.

The purpose of this paper is to reopen policy debates on the role of agricultural mechanisation in rural development. The paper examines very different and diverse patterns of agricultural mechanisation in some South Asian countries over the last 30 years

More cars and commercial vehicles for rural India, however, are welcome. India has very low density of cars with 22 per 1,000 citizens compared to 980 in the US and 850 in the UK. Rural women would find work or business if there is a better system of transportation in the villages. It means a focus on the rural economy and making road connectivity better.

Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari's official visit (May 11) to Russia is interesting especially as it occurred within a fortnight of the US raid in Abbottabad, killing Osama bin Laden.

What is interesting for Russia is how greater cooperation with Iran will affect its ties with other Middle Eastern nations, such as both Saudi Arabia and Israel, which has been a vocal opponent of a nuclear deal with Iran. Israel however does not occupy a special position in Russia's foreign relations as it does for the United States.

Russia is widely regarded as one of the major revisionist powers in the world, determined to upend the global liberal order. To be a global power, Russia must become a maritime power as well. Thus, it seeks to gain control in Eurasia and the region between the Black Sea and the Baltic region. The North European Plain and the river Danube hold strategic significance for Russia, the former being a gateway to Europe and the latter the economic lynch

Despite efforts, Indo-Russian nuclear engagement has been limited, mainly because of two factors. One, there is an unstable status of legal framework for the transfer of nuclear technology and second, India's efforts to diversify nuclear partners have been a little upsetting for Russia.

Growing geopolitical rivalries will continue to drive the development of hypersonic and other lethal weapons systems.

Russia has been dealing with extremism within its borders for several years. So it is not exactly unprepared for whatever threat ISIL currently poses. However, there is a degree of complacency that has set in.

The development is the latest indicator that the bilateral relationship is getting stronger.

The end of the Cold War in 1991 presented Russia and the European Union (EU) with an opportunity to reorganise their bilateral relationship. For more than a decade, they did manage to nurture close ties. Beginning in the mid-2000s, however, the relationship steadily declined, reaching its lowest in 2014 in the aftermath of the Ukrainian crisis. As mutual grievances have accumulated since then, there has been an absence of a forward-looking agenda

United States and India must ensure their current trade and tariff issues do not lead to serious strategic disagreement. The two cannot afford to miss the emerging geopolitical realities driven by China’s growing power.

While Russia is aware of Islamabad's role in fomenting international terrorism, it realises that any successful resolution of the problems associated with Afghanistan must involve Pakistan. A cancelled presidential visit cannot change the relevance of this, or of Russia's goal, in enhancing ties with Pakistan.

At a time when it is facing Western sanctions and a proxy war on oil prices, Russia sprang a huge surprise early this month by signing a gas deal with Turkey. The deal will enable Russia to pump natural gas into a Turkish hub, near the Turkey-Greece border and from there into the southern EU market.

The Syrian rebels are not back to square one, but to minus one. They have been outsmarted by the Assad regime, just as the Russians outsmarted the Americans.

The absence of earnest multilateral discussions could send more states down the path of space weaponization, making access to space increasingly tricky.

Even as the war of words continues, there will need to be practical measures to deal with the increasing threats to space.

Humanity depends heavily on the various benefits that nature provides us. It's impossible to truly estimate its value. However, economists and environmental scientists have estimated in dollars what it would cost us to accomplish the services nature provides. Using multiple databases, they estimate that nature provides $33 trillion dollars worth of services every year¿that's nearly twice the annual Gross National Product (GNP) of all the countri

Given its vast coastline, Delhi should devote its attention for now to importing hydrocarbons by sea, investing in equity oil in Russia and other energy-rich countries, and concluding swap arrangements rather than grandiose transregional pipelines.

Demographic trends in Russia since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 have largely been unfavourable. Deaths exceeded births for the first time in 1992, and a period of negative growth followed which continued unabated until 2012 when marginal growth was achieved for the first time in two decades. This paper studies the demographic patterns in Russia since 1991, which are unique for several reasons. While population decline is common amo

Africa has become essential to Russia’s geostrategic posture as Moscow seeks to overcome the backlash to its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. However, in the face of isolation and a contracting economy, Russia has realised that cultivating an entry point in Africa through conventional means such as foreign direct investment (FDI), trade, development assistance, or cultural and educational exchanges may not be its best option. Instead, Mosc

Contrary to Western assessments that Russia’s military intervention in Syria would only deepen the economic crisis it is already facing in lieu of conflicts

This paper outlines the development of Russia’s relations with the countries of Southeast Asia, focusing on the years after 2014. As relations with the West reached a new post-Cold War low, Moscow has intensified its efforts at building stronger ties with the East. The paper deals with the impact of these developments on the state of its political, economic and defense engagement in Southeast Asia, both bilaterally and multilaterally. It will s

Russia has always been actively involved with European politics. Its genesis in Kiev—close to the European borders—allowed it to participate in the affairs of the continent. Although Russia’s geographic expanse has been more in Asia, Russian political elites have traditionally identified the country as a European entity. However, following attempts at integrating with the transatlantic economic and political system during the first decade o