The Acorn

Archive for January, 2011

To be a real power

01.27.2011 · Posted in Foreign Affairs, Public Policy

On the real challenges facing India’s foreign policy Here’s a video of my opening remarks at a roundtable a few days ago at the India International Centre, New Delhi. It dealt with India in a globalised world and was organised by Vivek Dehejia, featuring Ashutosh Varshney (professor of political science at Brown University) and Paranjoy ...

Three thoughts for the Republic

01.26.2011 · Posted in Economy, Foreign Affairs, Public Policy, Security

Organising our republic, keeping it united and improving its lot For reflection on Republic day: Pragati’s inaugural editorial; on the grand strategy of uniting India and why we urgently need Reforms 2.0. The three thought archive: Three thoughts on on Republic Day 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005; and on Independence Day 2010, 2009, 2008, ...

Bruce Riedel’s underwhelming new book

01.18.2011 · Posted in Foreign Affairs, Security

It doesn’t tell us any more than we already know It is hard to see what Bruce Riedel’s new book “Deadly Embrace: Pakistan, America and the Future of Global Jihad” seeks to do. It covers the history of the United States’ relationship with Pakistan from Partition onwards, but is too brief and too shallow to ...

Scrap offsets and foreign investment caps

01.18.2011 · Posted in Public Policy, Security

Galvanising military modernisation requires radical changes to the procurement mindset Sushant K Singh, head of Takshashila’s national security programme and an editor of Pragati has an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal’s Asian edition, commenting on the Indian government’s new, more-of-the-same, defence procurement policy. Excerpt: The defense ministry in New Delhi won’t admit it, but ...

The Asian Balance: The East Asian kabuki

01.17.2011 · Posted in Foreign Affairs, Security

A curtain-raiser to this year’s geopolitical drama in five acts Excerpts from Business Standard column today: The first act began a few days ago when some online military buffs posted images of a new stealth aircraft, tested on the very day Robert Gates, US defence secretary, was in Beijing to discuss, well, military cooperation. The ...

Grand Strategy

01.14.2011 · Posted in Foreign Affairs, Security

India has always had a grand strategy: to keep the country united N S Sisodia, IDSA’s director-general, makes the case in the Indian Express today for the strategic affairs community to develop and articulate a grand strategy for India. IDSA recently launched the National Strategy Project (INSP) that aims to bring together a wide range ...

How the UPA government’s policies caused inflation

01.13.2011 · Posted in Economy, Public Policy

Gargantuan spending without addressing underlying supply bottlenecks Inflation is like fever — it is not the disease itself but a symptom of an underlying disease. The right approach is to treat the underlying disease and not focus on treating the symptoms. Supply bottlenecks are the underlying problem Inflation is the direct result of the UPA ...

The case for South Korean nukes

01.12.2011 · Posted in Foreign Affairs

Self-help is best Kim Dae-joong, columnist at South Korea’s Chosun Ilbo newspaper calls for Seoul to develop its own nuclear arsenal, arguing that the South’s nuclearisation is the key to the denuclearisation of the penisula. (Few) experts or politicians believe the North will actually abandon its nuclear program. They know that the North Korean regime ...

Pragati January 2011 – Securing Our Ocean

01.07.2011 · Posted in Aside, Economy, Foreign Affairs, Public Policy, Security

The January 2011 issue (No 46) is out. The highlight of this month’s issue is India’s relationship with its extended neighbourhood: first, we focus on maritime matters and second, we debate what role India ought to play vis-a-vis its neighbours. Featured are two book review essays, on the Indian Ocean and on the problems with ...