Rice, Kissinger and history revisited

Dr Condoleezza Rice and Dr Henry Kissinger, speakers at the annual meeting of the U.S-India Strategic Partnership Forum, in Delhi in October 2019, kept the audience riveted. The topics covered included China as competitor, the earlier disharmony in India-U.S. relations, and tips from a veteran on the art of negotiation


A search for order in cyberspace

A recent seminar on cyberspace stability in Shanghai showed a global preoccupation by nations to acquire capabilities and devise protective mechanisms against attacks. A reflection on two themes emerging from the discussions


Post-Abqaiq Saudi Arabia

The immediate panic in the aftermath of the missile attack on Saudi Aramco’s facility at Abqaiq underlines the still-critical role of the Kingdom to the world economy. The subsequent recovery of oil production – with no disruption – showed that Saudi Arabia is a reliable partner/guarantor of energy supplies. Our Energy and Environment fellow Amit Bhandari was in Riyadh recently for a conference, and describes a post-Abqaiq Saudi Arabia


Gandhi’s Bombay years

On the Mahatma’s 150th birth anniversary, our Bombay History Fellow harks back to three city sites where Gandhi launched movements that progressively stepped up the pressure on the British to leave the country


Failing to reform the UN

An expert workshop on reinvigorating the UN, offered an opportunity for scholars, think tanks and members of civil society to revisit the many contradictions that plague it 75 years after it was formed. An assessment of some of the issues that persist


Indo-French digital partnership

The India-France roadmap on cyber security and digital technology paves a detailed path for the two countries to cooperate in three areas where France is an acknowledged leader and can help India become cyber-resilient


From Interkosmos to Gaganyaan

On his visit to the Russian Far East this week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi secured Russia’s assistance in training India’s human spaceflight crew ahead of the launch of Gaganyaan in 2021-2022. French assistance for India has come in the form of its specialised knowledge of space medicine. Gaganyaan has thus become an India-Russia-France megaproject, a symbol of India’s futuristic space diplomacy



The DMZ, between peace and hostility

The Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) is a 250-km-long militarised border that divides the Korean peninsula roughly into half. It is one of the most heavily guarded borders in the world. The author, who had a unique opportunity to visit the DMZ, narrates her experience