Category Archives: India’s Pakistan Policy

Endless delusion

Posted on October 8, 2011 by Bharat Karnad

Come the annual meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in autumn and there’s India, predictably making the same old pitch for a permanent seat in the Security Council as part of “comprehensive reform” of the UN. As in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Strategic Relations with South East Asia & Far East, Strategic Relations with the US & West | Leave a comment

Special Command

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Bharat Karnad

Special Forces (SF) are the stuff of legend and military lore. Their derring-do and nerveless actions in the field have time and again rescued the losing side and turned the course of wars. Because the SF are geared to attaining … Continue reading →

Posted in India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Indian Navy, Indian Politics, Internal Security, Special Forces | 1 Comment

Can India say “Don’t Mess with us”?

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Bharat Karnad

The significant thing about the successful effort to locate and kill Osama bin Laden, the global symbol of Islamic extremism and head of the al-Qaeda terrorist organization, is its doggedness. Stretching out over three Administrations and some ten years, this … Continue reading →

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Nuclear mind games

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Bharat Karnad

When contemplating Pakistan’s nuclear build-up, Major General Ausaf Ali, an engineer officer and, as Director General – Operations and Plans, arguably the most important man in the Strategic Plans Division, Chaklala, the secretariat for that country’s Nuclear Command Authority, comes … Continue reading →

Posted in India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Army, Nuclear Policy & Strategy, Nuclear Weapons | 1 Comment

Rethinking Pakistan

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Bharat Karnad

“Cricket diplomacy” and the meeting of the Indian and Pakistan Home Secretaries are important because these were approved through the back channel maintained by Delhi with the Chief of Army Staff, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani – the hub of power … Continue reading →

Posted in Great Power imperatives, India's China Policy, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Indian Army, Indian Politics | Leave a comment

Lurking Opportunity

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Bharat Karnad

The one thing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, instinctively, gets right every time is what next to do with Pakistan.  The execution of Osama bin Laden, the iconic al-Qaeda leader, has put General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani and his Corps Commanders strung … Continue reading →

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Weak PM, Limp Policy

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Bharat Karnad

Dr. Manmohan Singh, by his own reckoning, is “an accidental prime minister”. That he has no leadership credentials worth talking about, is not a surprise. Install a career economic bureaucrat — he has been successively adviser to the commerce minister, … Continue reading →

Posted in Great Power imperatives, India's Pakistan Policy, Indian Army, Indian Politics, Internal Security, Military Acquisitions | Leave a comment

Nuclear borderline

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Bharat Karnad

Ever year, come January the Indian and Pakistani governments exchange lists of nuclear facilities (along with their coordinates), that each side undertakes not to attack in case of hostilities. Presumably, new power stations and other sensitive nuclear military-related installations are … Continue reading →

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Terror of Apathy

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Bharat Karnad

The terror bombings in Mumbai – by now a periodic occurrence – are like the cyclones that hit India’s east coast every other year which nobody can do much about. Like in earlier instances, this time around too, it has … Continue reading →

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‘First Mover’ Disadvantage

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Bharat Karnad

                              India has an unbeatable record. There is no arms control bandwagon it has not jumped on to with reckless alacrity. Indian political leaders and  diplomats are no lotus eaters or yokels easily conned into disarming the nation even as powerful … Continue reading →

Posted in Great Power imperatives, India's Pakistan Policy, India's strategic thinking and policy, Nuclear Policy & Strategy | 1 Comment