Category Archives: DRDO

Carrier aircraft muddle (augmented post)

Posted on September 2, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

(Navalised Rafale) [This blog post re-published by BloombergQuint Sept 18, 2017 as “Personal Feud or Technical Flaw, why was Tejas rejected?” at https://www.bloombergquint.com/opinion/2017/09/18/personal-feud-or-technical-flaw-why-was-tejas-rejected ———– Trust the Indian armed services to make it difficult for themselves and the country at every turn. … Continue reading →

Posted in arms exports, Asian geopolitics, civil-military relations, corruption, Decision-making, Defence Industry, DRDO, Europe, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian ecobomic situation, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, Military Acquisitions, Military/military advice, society, South Asia, Strategic Relations with the US & West, Technology transfer, United States, US., Weapons, Western militaries | 27 Comments

10 days to fueling the Aridhaman

Posted on August 25, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

(Arihant, underway) The second indigenous Arihant-class SSBN, INS Aridhaman, is completely outfitted and ready — the production time of some 10 years from the time when the special steel was first cut at the Vizag special projects facility. It doesn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Bhutan, China, China military, Decision-making, Defence Industry, DRDO, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, Japan, Military Acquisitions, Military/military advice, Missiles, Northeast Asia, Nuclear Policy & Strategy, Nuclear Weapons, Relations with Russia, Russia, russian assistance, South Asia, Strategic Forces Command, Strategic Relations with South East Asia & Far East, Vietnam, Weapons | 44 Comments

Finally, Vietnam has the Brahmos

Posted on August 18, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

The Vietnamese Government today confirmed that it is in possession of the Brahmos supersonic cruise missile armed with conventional warheads that the Indian government has taken an age to transfer to Hanoi. Vietnam is the one country China fears most … Continue reading →

Posted in arms exports, Asian geopolitics, Bhutan, China, China military, Culture, Decision-making, Defence Industry, DRDO, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, MEA/foreign policy, Military/military advice, Missiles, society, South Asia, South East Asia, Strategic Relations with South East Asia & Far East, Weapons | 33 Comments

DARIN – AESA coupling, and Brahmos ALCM

Posted on August 15, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

Informed that the entirely indigenous DARIN-III navattack system is now integrated with an AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) radar with the Israeli 2052 computer, on a Jaguar. This is great news. The slight uncertainty about the AESA radar is whether … Continue reading →

Posted in arms exports, Asian geopolitics, Bhutan, China, China military, civil-military relations, Culture, Decision-making, Defence Industry, DRDO, Europe, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, indian policy -- Israel, Iran and West Asia, Israel, MEA/foreign policy, Military Acquisitions, Military/military advice, Missiles, Russia, russian assistance, society, South Asia, Technology transfer, United States, US., Weapons, Western militaries | 14 Comments

The Realpolitik Thrust of Nehru’s Foreign Policy

Posted on August 14, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

Below is the videographed lecture of mine on this topic on Augst 8, 2017 at the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi, uploaded to youtube.com.

Posted in arms exports, Asian geopolitics, Central Asia, China, China military, civil-military relations, Culture, Decision-making, Defence Industry, disarmament, domestic politics, DRDO, Europe, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian ecobomic situation, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, indian policy -- Israel, indian policy -- Israel, Iran and West Asia, MEA/foreign policy, Military Acquisitions, nonproliferation, Nuclear Policy & Strategy, Nuclear Weapons, russian assistance, russian military, society, South Asia, Technology transfer, United States, US., Weapons | 15 Comments

IAF going for more Jaguars?

Posted on August 2, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

The other day a reporter for a foreign journal said he was checking out a story. It is a fantastic story not because it is improbable but because it would show up the Indian Air Force in very bad light. … Continue reading →

Posted in arms exports, Asian geopolitics, civil-military relations, Decision-making, Defence Industry, DRDO, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian ecobomic situation, Military Acquisitions, Military/military advice, Nuclear Policy & Strategy, Nuclear Weapons, Pakistan, Pakistan military, society, South Asia, Strategic Forces Command, Western militaries | 12 Comments

Handling China with calculated cool but get a light tank

Posted on July 29, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

( Xinqingtan tank) Thank God, the NSA Ajit Doval didn’t crumble under the weight of the occasion and give away the store on the Doklam confrontation to Messrs Xi, Wang, & Yang. Then again having been apparently instructed by the … Continue reading →

Posted in Asian geopolitics, Bhutan, China, China military, civil-military relations, Decision-making, Defence Industry, domestic politics, DRDO, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian ecobomic situation, MEA/foreign policy, Military Acquisitions, Military/military advice, Missiles, society, South Asia, Weapons | 26 Comments

The Arms of Others

Posted on July 17, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

(Test firing of the indigenous QRSAM) In the defence sector, India’s import fixation is taking a toll ———- As on some of his earlier foreign trips, Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised Israel, the host country, rich contracts for military hardware, in this … Continue reading →

Posted in arms exports, Asian geopolitics, civil-military relations, Culture, Decision-making, Defence Industry, domestic politics, DRDO, Europe, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian ecobomic situation, Indian Navy, indian policy -- Israel, indian policy -- Israel, Iran and West Asia, Israel, MEA/foreign policy, Military Acquisitions, Military/military advice, Missiles, Relations with Russia, Russia, russian assistance, society, South Asia, Strategic Relations with the US & West, Technology transfer, United States, US., Weapons | 24 Comments

Another TV discussion

Posted on July 10, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

‘We, the People’ on NDTV had a discussion on Modi’s foreign policy.

Posted in Afghanistan, Africa, arms exports, Asian geopolitics, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Central Asia, China, China military, Decision-making, Defence Industry, domestic politics, DRDO, Europe, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, indian policy -- Israel, Indian Politics, Internal Security, Iran and West Asia, Israel, Japan, MEA/foreign policy, Military Acquisitions, Myanmar, Nepal, Northeast Asia, Nuclear Policy & Strategy, Nuclear Weapons, Pakistan, Pakistan military, Russia, russian assistance, SAARC, society, South Asia, South East Asia, Strategic Relations with South East Asia & Far East, Strategic Relations with the US & West, Technology transfer, UN, United States, US., Vietnam, Weapons | 10 Comments

TV curtain raiser and Modi trip assessments

Posted on July 8, 2017 by Bharat Karnad

Several Rajya Sabha TV panel discussions — ‘Security Scan’ & ‘The Big Picture’ aired over the last three weeks, regarding PM Modi’s trips to the US, Israel, and the Astana summit of SCO.  

Posted in Afghanistan, arms exports, Asian geopolitics, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Central Asia, China, China military, Decision-making, Defence Industry, domestic politics, DRDO, Europe, Geopolitics, Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian ecobomic situation, Indian Navy, Indian Ocean, indian policy -- Israel, indian policy -- Israel, Iran and West Asia, Internal Security, Iran and West Asia, Israel, MEA/foreign policy, Military Acquisitions, Myanmar, Pakistan, Pakistan military, Relations with Russia, Russia, society, South Asia, South East Asia, Strategic Relations with South East Asia & Far East, Strategic Relations with the US & West, Technology transfer, US., Weapons, West Asia | 1 Comment