The Print | China benefits from US involvement in Ukraine & Gaza. India must tread carefully

In the context of the ongoing geopolitical contestation between the West and China, keeping the US engaged in Ukraine and Gaza will only benefit Beijing in the long run.

By Lt Gen Prakash Menon

Read the full article here.

The Print | India is walking a geopolitical tightrope. It can shape New Delhi’s diplomatic power

India’s stance on the Ukraine war has brought it closer to Russia. India has also managed to strengthen relations with the US and its allies, a feat that reflects India’s growing global clout

By Lt Gen Prakash Menon

Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Modi 3.0 must improve civil-military relations. Bring NSS, relieve CDS of extra duties

The 2024 Lok Sabha elections and the results have certainly strengthened India’s democratic credentials. The future course charted by the central government, led for the third time by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will be revealed through its policies and actions, indicating the extent of acceptance of the broad political contours of the electoral verdict, albeit subjectively interpreted. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Even if Agnipath is scrapped, India needs tough reforms to cut ballooning defence pensions

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s letter to President Droupadi Murmu on the “discriminatory” Agnipath scheme shows its importance in this Lok Sabha election. The BJP government introduced the scheme in 2022, where soldiers enrolled for four years are christened as Agniveers. Political parties across the spectrum have held differing postures on the scheme.

The Congress’ election manifesto stated that the party would “abolish the Agnipath programme and direct the Armed Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard) to resume normal recruitment to achieve the full sanctioned strength”. The BJP manifesto, on the other hand, maintains that the four-year enlistment programme will benefit a large section of the young and employable population. It has also stated that it is open to changes in the scheme after a review conducted by the Services. In the psychological framework of the electoral campaign, the issue is dovetailed within the larger issue of significant unemployment at the national level. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Army caught between religious & constitutional values. Defend secular, apolitical nature

Since Independence, the Indian Armed Forces – particularly the Indian Army – have had to navigate the socio-cultural minefields thrown up by the vagaries of domestic politics and religions. The Constitution provided the beacon that illuminated the path ahead. A beacon designed on the belief that maintaining an apolitical institutional character and secular outlook would sustain and defend India’s integrity. The foundation of this secular outlook was rooted in the embracement of the encultured notion that the military institution had no religion and the equivalent of its holy book was the Constitution. But such an institutional belief was subject to being shaken by the crosswinds of India’s religious diversity. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | What are China’s intentions in building Shaksgam Valley road? Not security, look to politics

China’s road-building capability and intentions in the Himalayas were highlighted recently through a post on X by researcher Nature Desai. Utilising satellite imagery, he argued that China has built a road across the Aghil Pass, located at a height of 4,805 m, and entered the lower Shaksgam Valley. The roadhead is now less than 30 miles from the Siachen Glacier. This triggered speculation in the Indian media about China’s intentions and capabilities regarding the potential collusive threat posed by China and Pakistan to India’s defences in the Siachen Glacier region. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Iran and Israel don’t have free will to start a war. It’s contingent on geopolitics

Exchange of blows from a distance was the prime characteristic of the latest bout between Iran and Israel. Firepower expressed itself through drones and missiles launched from aerial or land-based platforms. The main difference this time was that both nations attempted to apply military force at targets directly inside the opponents’ territory. The immediate trigger was Israel’s attack on Iran’s consulate in Damascus on 1 April. Iran considered it a violation of its sovereignty according to international legal norms and agreements. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | MIRV tech entry in nuclear arsenal must not lead India away from ‘No First Use’ policy

India has achieved two major milestones in modernising its nuclear weapons arsenal. First, the entry of MIRV technology in March, followed by the successful user trial of Agni-Prime ballistic missile on 3 April with a range of 1,000-2,000 km. The MIRV, or Multiple Independently Targetable Reentry Vehicle technology, tests have raised concerns about a potential nuclear arms race between India, China, and Pakistan and whether it would amplify similar concerns at the global level involving other nuclear weapon powers. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Successful Agni-5 test just one step. India needs to prepare an airborne command post

India’s recent successful test of MIRVs, Multiple Independently Targeted Re-entry Vehicles, delivered by the AGNI-5 missiles marks the success of its efforts to counter the Ballistic Missile Defense Systems of potential adversaries, China and Pakistan. The implications of MIRVs being included in the existing nuclear arsenal were covered earlier in ThePrint. This article attempts to utilise the limelight of the MIRV success, to highlight a critical issue that requires to be addressed post-haste. It relates to the survivability of India’s Nuclear Command and Control System. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Indian Navy is opening submarine doors to women, but it must navigate crewing challenges

Some cultures, such as the French, Portuguese, and Italian, consider ships to be masculine, while the Germans use ‘it’, in the neuter gender. But in India and other parts of the world, a ship is referred to in the feminine gender. An explanation, supposedly rendered in a humorous vein, is more naughty than nautical—the first thing a ship does on arriving at a port is to make it for the ‘buoys’! It is perhaps not surprising that among the three Services of the Indian Armed Forces, it is the Navy that is at the forefront of inducting women and projecting ‘nari shakti’. Recently, the Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Hari Kumar, envisioned the Navy’s aspiration of having a woman as its chief within the next 30-35 years. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Why some Navy veterans are opposed to the introduction of kurta-pyjama in the dress code

The kurta and pyjama, Central Asian in origin, have for centuries been popular in South Asia. It made its entry this month as an add-on to the list of the existing informal dresses in the Indian Naval officers’ messes and sailors’ institutes. Earlier in December, the Navy introduced new epaulettes which was publicised as being part of PM Modi’s political call for virasat par garv, pride in our heritage, and shedding ghulami ki mansikta, slave mentality. This article attempts to examine the military’s cultural value chain and identify the reasons for adverse reactions, especially on WhatsApp groups, the change in attire received from veterans in particular and civilians in general. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | India can be a major drone hub—if it learns to take risks, accept losses

The multiplicity of roles that drones can undertake has been battle-tested and their utility has been convincingly established. Depending on the role, drones come in various sizes. At the higher end of lethality are the American MQ 9-Reaper and at the lower end of surveillance is the Black Hornet weighing less than 1.2 ounces. India is in the process of acquiring 31 higher-end MQ9B Predator armed drones from the United States at an approximate cost of Rs 2.5 lakh crore. The deal was announced during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the US in 2023. The Navy already operates two unarmed Predator drones, which are on lease, at the Rajali naval air station in Tamil Nadu. The new acquisitions will be apportioned to the three Services with the Navy getting the majority share. Apart from the political message of reliance on the US for major weapon systems, it also signals that Atmanirbharta is not currently feasible in this class of weapon systems. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Army promotions must be based on capabilities, not lineage. Turf protection is main mischief

Caste is likely to be a dominant plot in the upcoming Lok Sabha election. But let’s interrogate how this hierarchical and discriminatory structure endures in the promotion system of the Indian Army. There is seemingly a system of reservation in Army promotions. Discrimination based on identity derived from lineage is the hardened core of the caste system. In the Indian Army, the enduring marker for the selection of its senior leadership is the lineage or ‘inherited identity’, particularly the professional segment one is initially inducted into. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Poonch incident should encourage military justice review. Bring one law for three Services

The frequency of terrorist violence in the Rajouri-Poonch districts in the Jammu division of Jammu & Kashmir has remained a cause for concern for over two years. This is in contrast to the decline of terrorism in the Kashmir valley during the same period. A combination of mountainous terrain, jungles and contiguity with the Line of Control makes the area suitable for hit and run attacks. Pakistan’s hand is obvious and the time period also overlaps with the thinning out of the Rashtriya Rifles, a counter-terrorism force, post China’s aggressive manoeuvres in Ladakh in 2020. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Ex-service chiefs have no place at Ram Temple inauguration. They must guard military values

The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra is supposedly inviting about 8,000 people for the Ram Mandir opening ceremony on 22 January 2024. From Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Reliance chairman Mukesh Ambani, the list includes prominent figures from varied fields as well as families of 50 ‘Kar Sevaks’ and a representative each from 50 countries. The invitation has also gone out to former chiefs of the armed forces, a step worth recounting in the broader framework of civil-military relations. It is verified that a flag rank veteran called up the former chiefs, seeking to ascertain their inclination to attend the function. It is understood that most of them declined. Those who indicated their willingness or did not directly turn down the invite have received a formal invitation. In terms of civil-military relations, the question that arises is an ethical one: How will the attendance of former chiefs at the 22 January event impact the secular and apolitical foundations of India’s military institution? Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Nijjar-Pannun saga is just a temptation to project a strong state. Arthashastra has answers

India’s alleged involvement in the killing of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada and in the plot to assassinate Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in the US against the so-called ‘Khalistani’ threat throws open a question that Chanakya’s Arthashastra offers an answer to. Morality and legitimacy in the utilisation of violence in statecraft are often in mutual conflict. According to the Arthashastra, if morality is seen as pursuing a ‘just cause’ that would eventually lead to a more prosperous and secure state, then it is the guiding light for the use of violence and other coercive means. There is, however, a difference between the means employed to address internal and external enemies. For the external enemy, Bheda (logic or trickery) and Danda (force) can be employed, but for your own people (especially those in the core of the kingdom), all means except force can be used. In the former, the use of force is seen as moral. However, Matsya Nyaya (law of the jungle) in the internal realm can also be curbed through force. These principles provide the guidelines for the legitimate use of violence. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | India-Pakistan can become Israel-Hamas. Lesson is not to fight terrorism by force alone

The Hamas-Israel war has entered its fifth week and deaths of innocent civilians remain the hub of its politico-strategic landscape. The cycle of violence initiated by Hamas on 7 October resulted in nearly 1,200 deaths and the kidnapping of over 200 hostages including children. This invited the Israeli invasion of northern Gaza, which continues to progressively enlarge the boundaries of humanitarian tragedy in Palestine. This article aims to explore the action-reaction cycle in the framework of ‘just war’ tradition, which categorises the moral criteria guiding two types of judgements under the captions of jus ad bellum (right to war) and jus in bello (right in war). It also touches upon the relevance of the issue in the context of India’s approach to Pakistan’s use of terrorism as a foreign policy tool. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Military is being politicised by selfie points, social work. But don’t dismiss Project Udbhav

For the first time in our history, an Indian Military Heritage Festival was held in New Delhi on 21 and 22 October 2023. It was organised under the auspices of India’s oldest Inter-Service organisation, the United Service Institution. It was supported by the Army Training Command. The festival was showcased as a flagship event to highlight India’s military heritage and traditions. Unsurprisingly, it has been perceived differently by members of the strategic community. The main point of the detractors is that such projects are part of several initiatives aimed to politicise the armed forces. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | India joined the information warfare on Gaza. Now it must prepare for tougher times

Information has the power to create, shift, or sustain already held  beliefs. Beliefs, in turn, influence and determine individual and collective behaviours and are often shaped by the narratives at play. In the ongoing Hamas-Israel war, the battle of narratives could play a crucial role in determining the course of events, including the cessation or continuation of hostilities. Hamas, the initial instigator in this round of conflict, has ravaged Israel by killing, wounding, taking hostages, and destroying property. Its methods involved breaching the border fence and launching attacks, primarily against civilians and some military targets, often accompanied by rocket fire aimed at cities and towns, including capital Tel Aviv. In response, Israel hit back primarily with air power, triggering a major humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Read the full article here.

ThePrint | Manipur violence won’t go away unless Modi’s ‘vision’ takes a U-turn

The recent six-month extension of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, or AFSPA, in Manipur seemed procedural and routine. After all, the entire state has been continuously declared a disturbed area since 1999, with the exception of Imphal Municipality since 2004, following protests led by Irom Sharmila. At both the national and Manipur levels, AFSPA has endured despite numerous calls against its use as an instrument of hard power of the State. Read the full article here.