Strategic Analysis

This article covers the problems of religious identities in two Central Asian countries – Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan – and analyses how globalisation and modernisation influenced them. International relations theories as well the sociology of religion presume that religious identity in contemporary Central Asia cannot be exclusively seen as a local product; it is of a twodimensional character and reflects both local and broad external influences. The article argues that while external dimensions are noteworthy, local developments and modernisation need elaboration.

• Laura Yerekeshva
• October 2004 |
• Strategic Analysis
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• C Uday Bhaskar
• October 2004 |
• Strategic Analysis
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In the background of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s obituary tribute to P.V. Narasimha Rao acknowledging the latter as the true father of Shakti nuclear test of May 11, 1998, let me recall Rao’s role in the development of the Indian nuclear deterrent as narrated by him. This is important in order to understand the correct historical perspective about very important decisions of the past; in this case, Rao’s account of the evolution of the nuclear policy during his term of office.

• K. Subrahmanyam
• October 2004 |
• Strategic Analysis
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• Arun Sahgal
• October 2004 |
• Strategic Analysis
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President Bush has announced Condoleezza Rice as the new Secretary of State in his second term. Her deputy at the National Security Council, Stephen Hadley, has been named as the new National Security Advisor. These two along with John R. Bolton, the Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs who serves as Senior Advisor to the President and the Secretary of State for Arms Control, Nonproliferation and Disarmament, represent the right wing of the foreign policy establishment.

• Parama Sinha Palit
• October 2004 |
• Strategic Analysis
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Yasser Arafat’s death on November 11, 2004, sparked off apprehensions regarding consequent political turmoil, civil war, increase in violence, confusion over future leadership and a subsequent state of chaos and anarchy in Palestine.

• Tanya Mohan
• October 2004 |
• Strategic Analysis
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In the emerging complex security situation in the Asia-Pacific region, Japanese security policies appear to be undergoing dramatic changes. The alliance with the US, especially the presence of American troops, is facing with some uncertainty after 9/11. The rise of China as a major economic and military power is seen to pose a serious challenge to Japan. Moreover, North Korea’s unabated attempts to develop WMD capabilities along with ballistic missiles threaten Japanese security directly. In response, Japan has initiated certain significant steps.

• G. V. C. Naidu
• October 2004 |
• Strategic Analysis
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Beslan, till recently an unknown small town in Russia, has become the latest ‘victim-symbol’ in the global pattern of terrorist violence. The manner in which innocent young children were slaughtered on September 3 marks a reprehensible low even by the standards of the terrorist. The death toll at the time of writing this comment is in excess of 350 and still climbing. The shocking and gruesome Beslan images that repeatedly screamed across millions of television screens the world over were reminiscent of the enormity of 9/11 three years ago.

• C Uday Bhaskar
• July 2004 |
• Strategic Analysis
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The Nuclear Tipping Point: Why States Reconsider Their Nuclear Choices.

• R. R. Subramanian
• July 2004 |
• Strategic Analysis
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Unlike other aspects of non-traditional security, energy security has been very closely linked with military security. Very often, it is the powerful state-consumers seeking to preserve an uninterrupted supply of energy at an affordable price, who threaten and use military force. At times, it is individuals and groups within the energy-producing countries seeking to resist energy-driven foreign interventions, who disrupt the supplies. The energy-military security nexus is at its peak in the present circumstances - mainly in Iraq, but also in the energy-rich West Asia.

• Gulshan Dietl
• July 2004 |
• Strategic Analysis
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