U.S. Strategy in Afghanistan: Old Wine in Trump's Bottle

The Afghan government, along with the United States does not have what it takes to substantially win against the Taliban on the battlefield, but they do not want to lose either. So, the new U.S. strategy on Afghanistan that has come after much reviews and reassessment among Trump’s inner circle of advisers is designed to avoid losing, rather than winning in Afghanistan. From a presidential candidate who believed that the U.S. should pull out immediately from Afghanistan to a president who has now owned the war publicly, President Trump has come a long way in a short time. However, it is still unclear what the new troop surge in Afghanistan is meant for, and what it sets to do, what has not been tried and tested already

Modi’s Tryst with Trump: Take the Road Taken and Move Ahead

The contours of India-US relationship have witnessed a quantum change at least in the convergent strategic thinking that the two countries have managed to develop in the 21st century. While this partnership is something that enjoys support across the political spectrum in both the countries, the uncertainty attached to President Donald Trump’s administrative style has had policymakers in Delhi re-calculating their steps

China and BRICS: Dealing with Power Asymmetry in a Multipolar World

A distinctive feature of the rise of the multipolar world order in the 21st century has been the proliferation of multilateral institutions. While the raison d\u27être of these institutions essentially remains elevating multilateral interests, as opposed to unilateral or even for that matter, bilateral interests, national interests continue to remain paramount. Even within multilateral institutions, states undertake various approaches to secure their own national interests over and above that of others. BRICS, a multilateral grouping of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, in its conception is targeted towards reforming and filling up the space left by the West-dominated structures of global governance. However, the power asymmetry inherent among the BRICS members creates traction that the Chinese require to wield the kind of influence that should concern other members, and certainly India. The dilemma of balancing common interest and national interest within multilateral organisations like the BRICS will be an eminent feature of the varied and multiple interest sets that countries have in an interdependent world. While countries will still find purpose, in the membership of multilateral institutions, the challenge of managing power asymmetry within those organisations will mean that countries find leverage through their engagement with countries outside those groups. For China, the heavyweight within the group, BRICS has multiple purposes, one of them being the elevation of Chinese interests of opposing Western hegemony. However, for India, for which the grouping remains of pertinence (given its stress on addressing emerging and important global challenges such as those of economic development and sustainability) taking a position against the so-called dominance of the West or aligning itself with any particular country or group that stands in opposition to others is a dilemma. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.431860

Perspectives on Trump's South Asia Policy

Reflecting on America’s foreign policy under the Trump administration, Dr. Monish Tourangbam argues that the new U.S. strategy on Afghanistan is designed to avoid losing, rather than winning in Afghanistan. While arguing from an Indian perspective, Tridivesh Singh Maini suggests that while it is tough to predict how U.S. policy will pan out towards Afghanistan, one major shift in Trump’s approach is that unlike previous U.S. administration’s he has not really drawn any red lines for India’s role in Afghanistan. Drawing on the Chinese perspective, Dr. Sriparna Pathak argues that as China shares an “all weather friendship” with Pakistan, public shaming of Pakistan for shielding terrorists is clearly not something that is acceptable to China. However, with respect to terrorism, China has its own woes emanating primarily from its Xinjiang province. Therefore, the American policy in South Asia, which in all probability will see greater American involvement in the region, will have to be carefully considered by the foreign policy mandarins in Beijing

The Shape of Things in U.S. Election 2016: A Non-American View

The U.S. presidential election 2016 has defied conventional notion of U.S. politics for both American voters and for U.S. election watchers outside the United States. Roughly a year ago, one would have safely assumed easy nomination wins for Hillary on the Democratic camp and mainstream Republicans like Jeb Bush on the other side. However, the rise of two insurgent voices within both parties turned the nomination cycle on its head. Many were kept wondering, as to what was transpiring among American voters, and many still wonder how Donald Trump became a Republican nominee, or how Bernie Sanders gave Hillary a run for her money

A Trump Win Wasn’t So Unlikely After All

<p>The political atmosphere in the United States has been shaken and there is no doubt that there are more questions than answers after the electoral verdict in the 2016 US Presidential election. When the primaries started, it would have been difficult not to think that establishment candidates like Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush would walk the aisle as nominees. But as the race progressed, political arithmetic and studied probabilities were thrown out of the window.  Even for many Republicans, it seemed hard to believe and accept that Donald Trump was their Presidential nominee. Now, Donald Trump is the new President-elect of the United States of America. Proving most political pundits and pre-election polls wrong, Trump has thrown research puzzles and questions that election watchers and scholars will grapple with for some time to come.</p

Afghanistan’s Unity Government Not So United

On August 11, 2016, media reports claimed that Afghanistan’s Chief Executive Officer Abdullah Abdullah criticized President Ashraf Ghani for failing to work collaboratively claiming that he had been left out of key decisions, and deemed Ghani arrogant and undeserving to serve the government. Abdullah also bemoaned that not even a single one-on-one meeting had been held between him and Ghani in the last three months. The Ghani camp responded calling Abdullah’s remarks as ‘not in line with the standards and spirit of governance, insisting that principles and legal criteria formed the basis of executive decisions that had been made.

Myanmar’s Political Coming-of-Age: What It Means for India?

The institution of a democratically elected government in Myanmar has heralded a new beginning in the political history of the country with implications for the region, specifically democratic India. The trajectory of India’s relations with Myanmar has been a checkered one, with India shunning off the military junta but eventually turning a new leaf to start engaging with them in the 90s, with India’s security concerns in its restive northeastern region being a major factor

China and BRICS: Dealing with Power Asymmetry in a Multipolar World

A distinctive feature of the rise of the multipolar world order in the 21st century has been the proliferation of multilateral institutions. While the raison d'être of these institutions essentially remains elevating multilateral interests, as opposed to unilateral or even for that matter, bilateral interests, national interests continue to remain paramount. Even within multilateral institutions, states undertake various approaches to secure their own national interests over and above that of others. BRICS, a multilateral grouping of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, in its conception is targeted towards reforming and filling up the space left by the West-dominated structures of global governance. However, the power asymmetry inherent among the BRICS members creates traction that the Chinese require to wield the kind of influence that should concern other members, and certainly India. The dilemma of balancing common interest and national interest within multilateral organisations like the BRICS will be an eminent feature of the varied and multiple interest sets that countries have in an interdependent world. While countries will still find purpose, in the membership of multilateral institutions, the challenge of managing power asymmetry within those organisations will mean that countries find leverage through their engagement with countries outside those groups. For China, the heavyweight within the group, BRICS has multiple purposes, one of them being the elevation of Chinese interests of opposing Western hegemony. However, for India, for which the grouping remains of pertinence (given its stress on addressing emerging and important global challenges such as those of economic development and sustainability) taking a position against the so-called dominance of the West or aligning itself with any particular country or group that stands in opposition to others is a dilemma. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.431860