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Showing posts from February, 2015

A New Era for India-Sri Lanka Relations? ( Source- The Diplomat, Author- Sudha Ramachandran)

Image credits- President of Sri Lanka Source- The Diplomat Author- Sudha Ramachandran Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena’s recent visit to India was aimed at mending bilateral relations that had deteriorated under his predecessor, Mahinda Rajapaksa, on account of the latter’s close embrace of China. During Sirisena’s visit, India and Sri Lanka signed four agreements that are expected to strengthen bilateral co-operation. However, whether these can counter effectively China’s enormous presence in the island seems doubtful. India is still a long way from matching or reducing China’s role in Sri Lanka. Of the four agreements, the most significant is that on civilian nuclear co-operation, which envisages an “exchange of knowledge and expertise, sharing of resources, capacity building and training of personnel in peaceful uses of nuclear energy.” Other agreements deal with co-operation in the fields of culture and agriculture, and will enable Sri Lanka to participat

North Korea’s New Anti-Ship Missile: No Cause for Alarm ( Source- The Diplomat/ Author- Nah Liang Tuang)

Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Author- David Monniaux Source- The Diplomat Author- Nah Liang Tuang On February 8, 2015, North Korea test fired five of what it termed “cutting edge” anti-ship missiles. Strategic political analysis would indicate that the date of the test firing holds more significance, as Pyongyang has chosen to showcase its latest naval armament upgrade a few weeks before annual U.S.-ROK military exercises, which the former regards as invasion rehearsals. While the missile testing was conducted to convey Pyongyang’s displeasure to Washington and Seoul, the successful testing of anti-ship missiles at a range of 200 km, as reported by South Korea’s defense ministry, is a development of note but not of alarm. No ‘Silver Bullet’ According to knowledgeable analysts, the DPRK’s latest weapon appears to be a Russian Kh-35 anti-ship missile, which the North Koreans christen the “KN-09” and claim as their own. Assuming that the KN-09 shares the same te

China and the South China Sea Resource Grab ( Source- The Diplomat/ Author- Dr. Michael Fabinyi)

Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Author- Voice of America Source- The Diplomat Author- Michael Fabinyi Much recent political commentary has focused on the dispute between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea. There is widespread recognition that a key driver of the dispute is competition over the region’s natural resources. This has led prominent commentators such as Robert Kaplan to warn of the likelihood of “Finlandization.” Yet, despite ongoing legal arguments, China currently has access to important natural resources in the Philippines. While international actors debate the legal status of Chinese and Philippine claims, China is continuing to “change the facts on the ground” in terms of access to resources. It does this through conventional rhetorical pressure and military means in the South China Sea, and by other modes of access to resources, including favorable trade arrangements and poaching. While attention does obviously need to be paid to legal

The Battle for Maritime Asia Heats Up ( Source- The National Interest/ Author- Richard Javad Heydarian)

Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Author- Mike Russia) Source- The National Interest Author- Richard Javad Heydarian Despite earlier hopes for a sustained de-escalation in maritime tensions in the Western Pacific, China has once again kicked off the year with a bang. In 2014, China reaffirmed its commitment to securing its territorial claims in the South China Sea by imposing new maritime regulations off of the coast of Hainan, which imperiled the fishing rights of other claimant states such as Vietnam. This was followed by a series of increasingly aggressive maneuvers in the Second Thomas Shoal, culminating with the Chinese Coast Guard vessels’ decision to effectively lay siege to the Filipino marine forces stationed in the area. Over the past few weeks of this year, China has continued to up the ante by allegedly ramming three Filipino fishing boats navigating close to the Scarborough Shoal, which is located 123 miles west of Subic Bay in the Philippines and 560 mi

Watch Out, China: India Is Building 6 Nuclear Attack Submarines ( Source- The National Interest/ Author- Akhilesh Pillalamarri)

INS Arihant ( Source- Indian Navy) Source- The National Interest Author- Akhilesh Pillalamarri The Indian government will be launching a major naval expansion soon that will include the indigenous construction of seven stealth frigates and six nuclear powered attack submarines. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cabinet approved plans to build the 13 new ships at about a cost of one trillion rupees or about $16 billion on Tuesday. The expansion would triple the size of India’s nuclear submarine fleet and comes on the heels of Narendra Modi’s pitch to increase the proportion of indigenous defense production in India. In a recent speech, Modi said that he would like the percentage of domestic procurement in India to increase to 70 percent. According to The Times of India, this decision comes at a time when India has a “critical necessity” to boost its “overall deterrence capability” in the Indian Ocean, especially the region stretching from the Persian Gulf to the St

China Stresses Ties With New Sri Lankan Government ( Source- The Diplomat/ Author- Shannon Tiezzi)

Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena  ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Author MaithriPala Sirisena Official) Source- The Diplomat Author- Shannon Tiezzi While Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena is in India on his first official trip abroad, Beijing wants to make sure no one thinks China is being left out. With Sirisena in India, China’s Foreign Ministry announced that Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera will travel to China at the end of February. As Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying pointed out, Samaraweera will be the first cabinet minister from Sri Lanka to visit China since Sirisena’s government took office. “Both sides attach great importance to the visit,” Hua said, adding China’s “hope that the visit by Foreign Minister Samaraweera will be an opportunity for the two sides to exchange views on the development of China-Sri Lanka relations under the new circumstances.” Those “new circumstances” – namely, the election of a n

China’s 'One Belt, One Road' To Where? ( Source- The Diplomat, Author- Lucio Blanco Pitlo III)

Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Author- Henry Le  Source- The Diplomat Author- Lucio Blanco Pitlo III The celebrated revival of the Silk Road would seem to herald the return of China’s charm offensive, winning over neighbors and other countries in the region through increased trade incentives and transport connectivity. If developing a sound soft power strategy is the mark of a rising world power, does this mean China is on its way? Certainly, in the wake of recent episodes of differences and disputes, the initiative should be seen as a welcome development. Nonetheless, some countries along the envisioned route remain wary and skeptical of the real intentions behind this offering, as well as the possible unfavorable conditions that may be attached to it. In addition, while Beijing tends to highlight its economic credentials, the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road (hereinafter, SREB/MSR) has strategic, political and security implications that pa

Make In India- INS Vikrant

CG of INS Vikrant  ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Author- Indian Navy) In continuation of our weekly series "Make In India", today we feature the INS Vikrant Aircraft Carrier. Designed in India,  the ship will be the combat ships ever designed in India. Designed by the Indian Navy's Naval design Bureau, two ships are planned in the series. The first INS Vikrant will be a STOBAR configuration at over 40,000 tonnes with a compliment of Mig-29 sea borne combat aircrafts and also  Kamov Ka-31 helicopters. Later the LCA Navy will also join the ship. The second ship will be of a bigger design with a displacement of more than 65,000 tonnes and will feature CATOBAR design and will include AMCA navy and assorted platforms which may also include E-2 AEW Aircrafts. This ship may be nuclear powered. It is in design stages and production will start later this decade. It will probably be the first time America will be helping with the EMAILS launch system. These ships and t