Author Archives: Bharat Karnad

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About Bharat Karnad

Senior Fellow in National Security Studies at the Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi, he was Member of the (1st) National Security Advisory Board and the Nuclear Doctrine-drafting Group, and author, among other books of, 'Nuclear Weapons and Indian Security: The Realist Foundations of Strategy', 'India's Nuclear Policy' and most recently, 'Why India is Not a Great Power (Yet)'. Educated at the University of California (undergrad and grad), he was Visiting Scholar at Princeton University, University of Pennsylvania, the Shanghai Institutes of International Studies, and Henry L. Stimson Center, Washington, DC.

Danger from Hong-10

Posted on August 13, 2013 by Bharat Karnad

Following up an earlier blog about China buying the entire Tu-22M Bacfire production line lock, stock and barrel from the Russian Kazan facility for a mere $1.5 billion (when our redoubtable air force has spent more than that amount on … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, China, China military, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, Military Acquisitions, Missiles, Nuclear Policy & Strategy, Relations with Russia, Russia, russian assistance, South Asia, South East Asia, Technology transfer | 3 Comments

Unforgiving take on past

Posted on August 11, 2013 by Bharat Karnad

(Review of Lt Gen V.K. Nayar’s book, ‘From Fatigues to Civvies: Memoirs of a Paratrooper’, Manohar, 2013; Rs 1395/-) Lieutenant general V K “Tubby” Nayar (Retd) is among a rare breed of military officers. Despite being outspoken with his seniors … Continue reading →

Posted in civil-military relations, guerilla warfare, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian ecobomic situation, Indian para-military forces, Indian Politics, Internal Security, Pakistan, Pakistan military, South Asia, South East Asia, Special Forces, Terrorism | Leave a comment

Failure-bound maritime strategy

Posted on August 9, 2013 by Bharat Karnad

The public perception of the Indian army being smacked around on the border by China needs correction. Actually army units with the Leh-based XIV Corps do “power patrolling”, matching the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) move for aggressive move, including … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, Asian geopolitics, China, China military, Europe, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, Military Acquisitions, West Asia | Tagged , | 13 Comments

Micro-wars as murderous business on LOC

Posted on August 8, 2013 by Bharat Karnad

With the media-generated mass boo-hooing attendant on the killing of the five jawans of the Bihar Regiment on the LOC in J&K, some core issues are being lost sight of. Firstly, as I have mentioned in a previous blog, such … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, China, China military, civil-military relations, Great Power imperatives, guerilla warfare, India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Army, Pakistan, Pakistan military, satellites, South Asia, Special Forces, Terrorism | 14 Comments

Creaky MiG-21 bison, weakened air defence

Posted on August 7, 2013 by Bharat Karnad

The near-antique MiG-21 bison (not bis! updated correction, sorry folks) still perform frontline service with the Indian Air Force, except the creakiness of these short range air defence combat aircraft is telling. The air frames are beginning to fray. Mindful … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, China, China military, Defence Industry, DRDO, India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Military Acquisitions, Pakistan, Pakistan military, Russia, russian assistance, South Asia | 3 Comments

Show dogs vs pit bulls and tension in the army

Posted on August 5, 2013 by Bharat Karnad

The unprecedented phenomenon of the carefully planned and orchestrated succession (I railed against) that fetched General Bikram Singh his promotion as Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) is coming home to roost. There’s enormous tension between the army chief and … Continue reading →

Posted in China, China military, civil-military relations, India's China Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Army | Leave a comment

French frankness and Defence hard-sell

Posted on July 26, 2013 by Bharat Karnad

The French Defence Minister Jean Yves Le Drian at a talk in IDSA straightforwardly presented some of the points in the ‘Defence and National Security White Paper 2013’ (the last such document was issued in 2008). He emphasized the fact … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, civil-military relations, Defence Industry, DRDO, Europe, Great Power imperatives, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian Navy, Indian Politics, Internal Security, Military Acquisitions, Missiles, South Asia, Special Forces, Strategic Relations with the US & West, Technology transfer, Western militaries | Leave a comment

Need to harden China policy

Posted on July 26, 2013 by Bharat Karnad

It is possible the Chinese may have bitten off more than they can chew. Beijing has rubbed three main countries of the Indo-Pacific region — Japan, the United States and India — the wrong way. This new triple entente constitutes … Continue reading →

Posted in Afghanistan, Central Asia, China, China military, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Army, Indian Ocean, Japan, Northeast Asia, Russia, russian military, South Asia, Strategic Relations with South East Asia & Far East, Strategic Relations with the US & West, United States, US., Western militaries | 1 Comment

India – America’s 52nd State?

Posted on July 24, 2013 by Bharat Karnad

The pull on Indian legislators of “planet America” (in Christopoher Hitchens’ words) is so strong that some 65 Members of Parliament — 40 of them from the Rajya Sabha, have allowed themselves to be sucked into that planet’s orbit and … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, Indian Politics, Internal Security, South Asia, Strategic Relations with the US & West, United States, US. | Leave a comment

BJP Rajnath’s wrong steps

Posted on July 22, 2013 by Bharat Karnad

Bharatiya Janata Party President Rajnath Singh has taken a few missteps. The first one was his unthinkingly parroting the line that education in the English language medium is a measure of retrogression when, whether any body likes it or not, … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, Indian Politics, Internal Security, South Asia, Strategic Relations with the US & West, United States, US. | 3 Comments