Manoj Ambat's Blog dealing with Defence, Foreign Affairs, Strategic Affairs and Politics

Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Indian navy) Source- Russia & India Report Russian ships will arrive at Visakhapatnam port on the southeast coast of India in the state of Andhra Pradesh on December 6 to take part in the Indra joint naval maneuvers, a source close to the Indian Ministry of Defense told TASS on Tuesday. "The exercise will be held from December 7 to 12 this year; the welcoming ceremony for the detachment of the Russian Navy ships is planned for December 6," he said. According to him, taking part in the drills from the Russian side will be a missile cruiser, a destroyer, a large sea tanker, a tugboat and two naval helicopters, and from the Indian side - a multipurpose frigate, a destroyer, an anti-submarine plane, a Coast Guard plane, two training planes and a helicopter. "The maneuvers will focus on drilling antisubmarine defense of ships, gun practice on surface and air targets. Also, it is planned to conduct anti-terrorist ope

Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / MEA official gallery, Govt of India Source- The Diplomat Author- Ankit Panda It’s late November and Asian summitry is in the air. India, which has long sought to “Look East” and, of late, has sought to “Act East,” won’t be left on the sidelines. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi left on a trip to Malaysia and Singapore on Friday to attend two important summits: the ASEAN-India and East Asia Summits. Modi will also meet with Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak to discuss bilateral issues in India-Malaysia relations. In Singapore, Modi will focus on building private sector interest in investment opportunities in India and tout his “Make in India” initiative, which aims to bolster India’s manufacturing sector. Modi’s four-day visit will be closely watched by observers back home, given the broad economic and security agenda. Ahead of his trip, the Indian prime minister noted that the summits in Malaysia will focus on “pressing securit

Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / United States Airforce Source- The National Interest Author- Greg Thielmann For many years, U.S. intelligence officials have publicly assessed that Iran could possibly flight-test an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) by 2015. Among other consequences, this now outdated projection, and misinterpretations of it, prompted policymakers to schedule the deployment of ever more advanced missile defense systems into Europe, and led Congress to propose building a major strategic interceptor base on the Eastern Seaboard of the United States. GOP presidential candidates have also made hyperbolic claims based on the 2015 date. For example, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) warned in January that Iran would soon be able to launch nuclear strikes against “New York or Los Angeles.” But sometime during the past few months, the long-standing official estimate of Iran’s potential intercontinental missile capability was significantly revised. Adm.

Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / ESO Source- Eurasia Review Dark matter is called “dark” for a good reason. Although they outnumber particles of regular matter by more than a factor of 10, particles of dark matter are elusive. Their existence is inferred by their gravitational influence in galaxies, but no one has ever directly observed signals from dark matter. Now, by measuring the mass of a nearby dwarf galaxy called Triangulum II, Assistant Professor of Astronomy Evan Kirby may have found the highest concentration of dark matter in any known galaxy. Triangulum II is a small, faint galaxy at the edge of the Milky Way, made up of only about 1,000 stars. Kirby measured the mass of Triangulum II by examining the velocity of six stars whipping around the galaxy’s center. “The galaxy is challenging to look at,” he said. “Only six of its stars were luminous enough to see with the Keck telescope.” By measuring these stars’ velocity, Kirby could infer the gravitational f

The forbidden city ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Rabs003) Source- The National Interest Author- Andrew K. Erickson Rigorous, measured, readable scholarship is always in insufficient supply generally. It is particularly so concerning the vital issue of U.S.-China relations. The world is awash in books on the twenty-first century’s most important bilateral relationship, but even amid this torrent The China Challenge: Shaping the Choices of a Rising Power by Princeton University professor Thomas J. Christensen represents a unique contribution. Given the difficulties inherent in its weighty subject, the volume will remain relevant for years to come. Above all, it offers Christensen’s unique perspective as a leading scholar on the topic who has also served as a high-level diplomat—namely, as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs with responsibility for China, Taiwan, and Mongolia. Christensen writes clearly, in active voice. He subst

Indian BMD system ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Sniperz11) Source- The Diplomat Author- Ankit Panda On Sunday, India’s Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) tested an indigenously developed supersonic interceptor missile: the Advanced Air Defense (AAD) missile. The AAD is part of the first phase of India’s Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) initiative, along with the Prithvi Air Defense (PAD) missile. The Prithvi provides exoatmosphermic defense while the AAD is optimized for endoatmospheric performance. According to Indian defense officials who spoke to the Press Trust of India, “The test was conducted to validate various parameters of the interceptor in flight mode.” Specifically, “The ‘kill’ effect of the interceptor was being ascertained by analysing data from multiple tracking sources,” according to a DRDO scientist. The test was conducted at a testing site on Abdul Kalam Island, which was formerly known as Wheeler Island. The AAD has been unde

Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / United States Navy Source- The National Interest Author- James Holmes Word has it the Pentagon will soon release a directive outlining its “Joint Concept for Access and Maneuver in the Global Commons” (JAM-GC). JAM-GC is the Joint Staff’s manifesto for managing the “anti-access/area-denial” (A2/AD) problem, principally in waters that wash against the Eurasian rimlands. Anti-access is how the Chinas, Irans, or Russias of the world deploy sea- and shore-based weaponry to make things tough on foes cruising their near seas or skies. Make things tough enough and an opponent might keep clear. Access denial is an acute problem for U.S. and allied forces operating within reach of land-based airfields or anti-ship missile batteries, to say nothing of missile-toting submarines, patrol craft, or surface combatants. That is to say, A2/AD constitutes a problem all along the East and South Asian periphery. Not just naval fleets but armies and ai