Gulf Crisis: Pakistan Hosts the Table

Gulf Crisis: Pakistan Hosts the Table; India Influences the Room (Part V)

India’s role in the Middle East crisis is defined not by presence at negotiation tables but by its ability to sustain stability around them.While Pakistan facilitates talks between the US and Iran in Islamabad, India underwrites the broader security architecture through its maritime presence, economic weight, and multi-aligned diplomacy.

Water Security and Regional Peace: Future of the Indus Waters Treaty in a Changing Climate

The Indus Waters Treaty has lasted more than 60 years, illustrating diplomacy's ability to handle one of South Asia's most sensitive resources. However, climate change and geopolitical tensions have called into question its significance. To guarantee that the treaty continues to prevent war and promote shared prosperity, Indian and Pakistani governments must update its provisions, invest in joint institutions, and view water as a shared strategic asset rather than a source of friction.

Iran at the Crossroads: In a Changing Region, Tehran’s Critical Choices Could Shape Change (Part IV)

Iran's demonstrated endurance to maintain its intrinsic rights to nuclear enrichment as an NPT state even under sanctions and its willingness to escalate without collapsing, is an important consideration for the Iranian regime. This issue was centre stage at the collapsed Islamabad negotiations. How Iran shapes its stand will be centre piece of future negotiations. 

The Strait as Leverage: Hormuz the New Geometry of Power? (Part III)

Iran’s role in this transformation is central. Its ability to influence the Strait has reshaped strategic thinking across the region and beyond. External powers must now operate within constraints that did not exist before. For the Gulf states, the implications are immediate and tangible. Their economic lifelines pass through this narrow corridor. Any disruption affects not only revenue but also national security.For the broader international community, the lesson is clear. 

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Health diplomacy: COVID-19 opens up opportunities for India’s pharma

As the world battled a never health threat in coronavirus, India’s dependable pharmaceutical sector has risen to the occasion, writes Dr. Gurpreet Sandhu for South Asia Monitor 

National security: Strategic deterrence in the Indian context (Part II of two-part series)

Our goal is to achieve punitive and credible deterrence capability against Pakistan and China respectively. While it will be a challenge, India has the capabilities and capacities to fight a two-front war and ensuring a stalemate, which will be a strategic victory, with grave consequences to the aggressors, writes Lt Gen P R Kumar (retd)  for South Asia Monitor 

Zoonotic diseases: Continued wildlife exploitation will lead to next pandemic

Continued exploitation of the natural world through hunting, trade, habitat degradation, and urbanisation has shifted mammal populations and led to the rise in infectious animal diseases that can jump over to humans, writes Sarmin Akter for South Asia Monitor

India should aim high to be a global aerospace hub

With trust in China – presently one of the largest exporters of aircraft components - weakening. India’s future as a manufacturer of higher-complexity aerospace items is completely in our hands. India must present itself as a viable alternative to China's sourcing, writes Ramesh Ramchandani for South Asia Monitor

India's anti-defection law exposes its flawed democracy

One serious objection to the anti-defection law is the unlimited powers given to every political party to put down dissent or an alternative view, writes Vinod Aggarwal for South Asia Monitor

Ladakh standoff: India needs to enhance its deterrence reputation

It is going to be a very interesting winter to come,  as it is going to be a defining moment in our history having far greater implications than tactical, if we come out of it achieving our national and military objective,  writes Lt Gen PR Kumar (retd) for South Asia Monitor

To offset China, India should go for unilateral trade liberalisation along with boosting regional connectivity

A total of 142 connectivity projects in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal and Sri Lanka have been initiated by India over the last six years, of which 53 have been completed, writes N Chandra Mohan for South Asia Monitor

Why is Rafale seen as a game-changer in air warfare?

The most famous of Rafale's weapons is the METEOR - beyond visual range air-to-air missile - which is widely recognised as a game-changer for air combat, writes Anil Bhat for South Asia Monitor

How human folly killed a famous natural lake in Pakistan

The Narerri Lagoon along the coast of the Arabian Sea, in the extreme south of district Badin in Sindh province, has been one of the few famous natural lakes of the province which is a recognized Ramsar wetland site since 2001, writes Muhammad Abbas Khaskheli  for South Asia Monitor

Envoy change signals tough road ahead for India-Bangladesh ties

Hasina's government has also been very distressed with provisions in the Indian Citizenship Amendment Act, which singles out Bangladesh, along with Pakistan and Afghanistan, as nations which persecute their minorities, writes Nilova Roy Chaudhury for South Asia Monitor 

Bangladesh PM Hasina as South Asia's peacemaker?

Hasina has some of the finest diplomats and public faces to handle the initial take-off of a South Asian peace process, if she were to push it, though much depends on how India and Pakistan respond, writes Subir Bhaumik for South Asia Monitor

India's currency swap agreements would help South Asian economies

While countries of the South Asian region are taking individual steps to battle COVID-19, currency swaps have emerged as an important tool of economic cooperation in the region, writes Partha Pratim Mitra  for South Asia Monitor

Double whammy puts Bangladesh media in deep crisis

The media and newspaper industry in Bangladesh face two major challenges: First, economical challenges, and second, the repression by the government that has stifled the freedom of expression and has made various attempts to silence critical coverage, writes Aashish Kiphayet for South Asia Monitor

Police brutality: The unavowed reality of India

The colonial legacy of the Indian police highlights how the use of force is endemic to policing in India, manifest in the organizational structure and the professional culture which often tolerates and even promotes abuse, write Subhranil Ghosh and Sreemoyee Majumder for South Asia Monitor

Changing dynamics of deterrence in international security and strategic paradigm (Part 1 of two-part series)

Deterrence requires a national strategy that integrates diplomatic, informational, military, and economic powers. India must develop strategies, plans, and operations that are tailored to the perceptions, values, and interests of specific adversaries, writes Lt Gen P R Kumar (retd) for South Asia Monitor