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

Chinese HQ-9 Air Defense systems ( Source- Wikimedia Commons / Author- Iceunshattered) Source- Eurasia Review Author- Robert Shines With the recent placement of surface-­to-­air missiles (SAMs) on Woody Island, a subset of the Paracel Islands, China has taken a major step toward militarization of the South China Sea. The action was taken during the recent US-­ASEAN “Sunnylands” Summit, where economics, security, and international law were all discussed. In the context of recent and historical events however, the action, though not entirely justified, could not have come as a surprise to any of the parties involved and forms only the latest chapter in the ongoing book of the South China Sea. FONOPS and the First Island Chain Recently, the U.S. initiated “freedom of navigation” (FONOPS) maneuvers in the South China Sea, designed to ensure the free flow of maritime commerce between the various claimants in the South China Sea disputes. More importantly, the FONO

Sukhoi SU-35 S ( Credits- Wikimedia Commons / Aleksandr Medvedev) Source- The National Interest Author- Harry J. Kazianis Once again, the South China Sea is back in the news, and once again, it’s for all the wrong reasons. The People’s Republic of China seems to have one crystal-clear objective: to dominate this important body of water to such an extent that they will be able to enforce what they call their “nine-dash-line” claim that incorporates almost the entire sea. What comes after that is unclear. For example, would China stop any and all foreign military vessels from transiting, by force if necessary? Would Beijing kick out all so-called foreign fishing vessels? How far do Chinese claims of so-called “indisputable sovereignty” go? Know this—if trends continue, in the next few years, we might just find out. But in all honesty, we are getting ahead of ourselves just a wee bit. In fact, there are several important steps that Beijing will need to follow be

Japanese Soryu class submarine under construction ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / Hunini) Source- Eurasia Review Author- Sam Bateman Australia’s future submarine programme is the largest and most complex defence procurement in the nation’s history. The decision as to which submarine to choose has become one of grand strategy with far-reaching economic, political, and strategic consequences. While technical issues to establish the “best” submarine remain important, strategic, political and economic factors are also key determinants of the decision. It could have significant impact on Australia’s regional relations and the ability of Australia to act independently within the region. The three contenders in the current evaluation process are: France’s state-controlled naval contractor DCNS offering a conventional-powered version of the nuclear-powered Barracuda-class submarine; ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) of Germany with a Type 216 Class submarine, an up-size

North Korean head of state Kim Jung Un ( Credits- Internet image) Source- The National Interest Author-  Gordon G. Chang CHOE RYONG-HAE, North Korea’s second- or third-ranked figure, did not attend a state funeral in November, and, more significantly, his name did not appear on the list of the event’s organizing committee. Choe’s sin? A water leak at the newly constructed Mount Paektu Hero Youth Power Station. A South Korean government spokesman said the omission of Choe’s name was unprecedented, but transfers, demotions and executions of senior regime figures—in the top levels of the Korean Workers’ Party and especially the Korean People’s Army—have become all too common under young leader Kim Jong-un, who came to power on the unexpected death of his father, Kim Jong-il, in December 2011. Many thought that Choe had been executed. The speculation was only natural. Since Kim Jong-un took over, many senior figures have lost their lives, like Kim Yang-gon, who died

THAAD launcher ( Image credits- Wikimedia Commons / United States army) Source- The National Interest Author-  Raoul Heinrichs Tensions are once more running high on the Korean Peninsula. Yet again, North Korean provocations have triggered an action-reaction cycle that is bringing into sharp relief the competing interests of each of the major players on the Peninsula. In the latest case, a fourth North Korean nuclear test in January, followed by the launch last week of a satellite aboard what is effectively an intercontinental range ballistic missile, has provided the impetus for Seoul to enter immediately into discussions with Washington about expediting the deployment of a sophisticated ballistic missile defense (BMD) system known as Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD).  China, for its part, strongly opposes the deployment. Politically, such a development is an affront to China's prestige and its increasing sense of its role as the principal arbiter

Image credits- VOA Source- The Diplomat Author- Kunwar Khuldune Shahid Around 9 a.m. on January 20, four Taliban-affiliated gunmen entered Bacha Khan University, Charsadda in Pakistan’s volatile Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province. By around 12:30 p.m., all four of them lay dead in the boys’ hostel. They had been gunned down by local security forces, but not before 21 people, mostly students and staff members, had been killed. This was the second high-profile attack on a Pakistani educational institute in 13 months. On December 16, 2014 the Army Public School in KP’s capital city Peshawar was attacked by militants, killing 144 people, including 132 schoolchildren. The gut-wrenching scenes from the APS attack are believed to be the defining factor behind Pakistan uniting to launch the much touted National Action Plan (NAP) against militancy and extremism. “Had it not been for our security guards everyone would’ve forgotten APS,” the BKU Dean of Sciences Abdus Sattar t

A solar farm ( Image credits- VOA/ Author0 Source- Eurasia Review  Author- Aniket Bhavthankar Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Francois Hollande laid the foundation stone of the International Solar Alliance (ISA) headquartered in Gurgaon during the latter’s visit to India as a chief guest for 67th Republic Day. Modi and Hollande jointly announced formation of the ISA during Conference of Parties-21 in Paris the last year. The ISA visualizes building a partnership between more than 120 countries situated between Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn as they receive sunshine in abundance for around 300 days in a year. Currently, 121 countries across the world are part of the ISA. Renewable and non-traditional energy sources are one of the ways to confront the challenges of the climate change. India’s ‘Intended Nationally Determined Contribution’ has set an ambitious target to scale up capacity of renewable energy from 30 GW in 2015-16 to 175 G