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

Image credits- Xinhua Source- The Diplomat Author- Richard Q. Turcsányi In late November China hosted the leaders of 16 Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries in Suzhou for the annual summit of the 16+1 platform. This was the first time the leaders had met in China, after the summits in Poland, Romania, and Serbia. The conference theme was announced as “new beginning, new domains, and new visions.” The 16+1 platform was formally created in April 2012, when Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao met for the first time with his 16 counterparts from the CEE countries in Warsaw. The year before Wen had already met with the CEE economic ministers in Budapest. Depending on which meeting we count as the first one, the present form of China-CEE cooperation now enters its fourth or fifth year. The theme of the Suzhou conference might suggest that the partnership needs to be restarted and that “new domains and new visions” need to be discovered and applied. So what is new about C

Russian TOC-1A Buratino ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / ru:Участник:Goodvint) Source- The National Interest Author- Dave Majumdar Russia is reportedly deploying the TOS-1 Buratino multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) to Syria as part of its expanded presence in that country. It is unclear how many of the weapons have been sent to Syria, reports suggest a substantial number have been deployed. Indeed, there are videos of the Buratino purportedly in action in Syria’s Latakia province. But while Russia has deployed other ground vehicles and artillery pieces to the war-torn country, the use of the Buratino in Syria is likely to draw a strong reaction from many quarters. Based on the chassis of the T-72 tank, the TOS-1 is no ordinary self-propelled artillery piece—it is primarily designed to launch massive thermobaric charges against infantry in confined spaces such as urban areas or mountainous regions. While there is no question of the effectiveness and devastating

Indian navy flotilla ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Indian navy) Source- The Diplomat Author- Darshana M. Baruah On October 26, 2015, the Indian Navy released its latest maritime strategy, titled “Ensuring Secure Seas: Indian Maritime Security Strategy.” This edition is a revised and updated version of the previous outlined strategy “Freedom to Use the Seas: India’s Maritime Military Strategy,” published in 2007. The title itself is indicative of the changing tone of the Indian navy’s interests and intentions from the 2007 strategy. The previous strategy did not take into consideration the changing geopolitical environment and its strategic implications on India’s maritime interests. The 2015 maritime security strategy addresses this gap by complementing the evolving security dynamics in the Indian Ocean region and reflecting a bold Indian navy with a renewed outlook on India’s maritime security needs. The security architecture in maritime Asia along with the

India- Africa Forum Summit ( Image credits- Flickr / MEA official image gallery) Source- The Diplomat Author- Tim Steinecke In late October, the majority of Africa’s heads of state followed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s invitation and travelled to New Delhi for the third India-Africa Forum Summit (IAFS). The high-profile summit came at a time when India’s political and economic relations with African states have generally been overshadowed by the more prominent “Sino-African relations,” as all action between China and African states is styled. Many observers were expecting the policy-savvy Modi to use the IAFS to introduce a new era of India-Africa relations, potentially even outlining an Indian strategy to address the perceived omnipresence of China in Africa. While Modi rhetorically made use of the special connections between Africa and India, the summit nevertheless remained within known territory of international approaches to Africa. Modi promised concessional l

INS Sindhughosh underway ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / United States Navy) Source- The National Interest Author- Dave Majumdar The Indian media is claiming that one of New Delhi’s Russian-built Kilo-class diesel-electric attack submarines managed to “sink” a nuclear-powered U.S. Navy Los Angeles-class attack submarine during exercises in October. The Indian submarine INS Sindhudhvaj (S56) allegedly “killed” USS City of Corpus Christi (SSN 705) during an exercise called Malabar that is held annually between India, Japan and the United States. According to the Indians, the submarines were assigned to track each other down in the Bay of Bengal. “The way it happens is that the Sindhudhvaj recorded the Hydrophonic Effect (HE) - simply put, underwater noise - of the nuclear powered submarine and managed to positively identify it before locking on to it. Being an exercise what did not happen was the firing,” an Indian naval officer told India Today. The Indian vessel

Chengdu J-20 ( Image credits- Xinhua) Source- The Diplomat Author- Benjamin David Baker Tensions are rising high throughout the Asia-Pacific. From the Indo-Pakistani border, through Australia’s controversial border policies to China’s disputes with its neighbors in the South and East China Seas, Asian states have been increasing investments in their military capabilities. In all these cases, having forceful and credible aerial assets is a crucial part of deterrence. This is reflected in regional defense spending. Meanwhile, the world is facing a generational shift in military aircraft. Since the final decade of the Cold War, the skies have been dominated by so-called “fourth-generation” combat aircraft: supersonic jets with increasingly sophisticated electronic capabilities, equipped with weaponry able to engage the enemy over several kilometers distance. These still make up the backbone of basically every modern air force around the world. However, several states