foreign affairs jan issue Courtesy: Foreign Affairs
1 January 2012

The Future of the Yuan

China seems to want the yuan to dethrone the dollar as the global reserve currency. But don’t expect China’s currency to take over anytime soon. The yuan will rise, but far slower than predicted, and Beijing’s puzzling efforts to help it along reveal flaws in the government’s divided and incremental approach.

anna hazare 2 Courtesy: nazeah/Wikimediacommons - Ramesh Lalwani/Flickr
30 December 2011

2011’s Top Foreign Policy Cheers and Jeers

The year 2011 saw various events - the Arab Spring, anti- corruption protests, Europe's sovereign debt crisis - transform countries and reshape the world order. Gateway House takes a look at what these events mean for India, and presents India's top foreign policy cheers and jeers for the year.

kayani mullen Courtesy: U.S.ArmedForces/WikimediaCommons
30 December 2011

Pakistan: Mired in Politcal Miasma

The 'memogate' fiasco in Pakistan highlights, yet again, the tensions that exist between the country’s political establishment and the Pakistan Army. While the final acts of this maneuvering are being played out, will the all-powerful Army continue to push the civilian government into a corner?

imran kkhan Courtesy: Jawad Zakariya/WikimediaCommons
30 December 2011

Imran Khan: Yet another messiah?

Imran Khan, leader of the Pakistani political party Tehreek-e-Insaaf, means well, and has the support of many in his country. But without any solid reforms manifesto, and almost no one in his party to implement his plan, what really are his chances in the upcoming elections?

manipur Courtesy: Manipur Police/WikimediaCommons
22 December 2011

Look to Manipur before looking East

What have economic blockades in India's North East achieved? For one, they choked off the supply chain of an already isolated region. With Myanmar showing signs of warming towards India, New Delhi must establish ties with its eastern neighbour, but first, it needs to fix Manipur’s broken socio-political landscape.

TAPI: Possibility or pipe dream? Courtesy: Michael Trolove/WikimediaCommons
21 December 2011

TAPI: Possibility or pipe dream?

Growing instability in the region make the planned Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline seem more like a burden than a solution to India’s hunt for alternative energy sources. Is it wise for India to move ahead with the $7.6 billion project?

Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP)
13 December 2011

Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP)

Amidst myriad country groupings that already exist – BRICS, IBSA, APEC, SCO and many others – a new initiative in the Pacific is looking to integrate more powerful countries to form a multilateral free trade agreement – the Trans Pacific Partnership. How important is this towards the reshaping of trade and power?

r2p Courtesy: UN Photo/Paul Banks
6 December 2011

Reconsidering R2P, post-Libya

After the crass misuse of Responsibility to Protect (R2P) in Libya, the broader question is: where is R2P headed? Do the events in Libya herald a more explicit assertion of this doctrine in other parts of the world? And should India rethink its viewpoint towards this ambiguous doctrine?

russia india Courtesy: PMO
5 December 2011

India-Russia: Taking each other seriously

The India-Russia relationship has seen much progress over the past year - 30 MoU's were signed, two Russian nuclear reactors were set up in India and visa regimes have been eased considerably. But will this be enough to lift the relationship from the benign neglect of the past?

gateway of india Courtesy: Xerxes Adrianwalla
1 December 2011

The Gateway of India, redefined

While it is common for monuments of erstwhile rulers to be violently demolished, India has refrained from such actions. After 100 years, what does the Gateway of India mean today? Is it a metaphorical portal for exploring how India and Indians might help to foster new paradigms of power at home and abroad?