Holding the Status Quo? Taiwan’s Security under the Tsai Administration

As China is Taiwan’s largest source of imports and exports, this endows China with a powerful leverage against the latter.

The Fate of Democracy In Pakistan

Pakistan is stuck in a grey zone.  There was evidence of it moving towards becoming an illiberal hybrid regime during the Zaradri administration, but the military went on the offensive and the democratic space contracted to being an illiberal tutelary hybrid regime. There is now a concern that Nawaz’s fighting talk may lead to a clash between institutions and imperil the democratic process.

Pakistan’s Democracy at 70: A Critical Juncture?

The ouster of Nawaz Sharif is once again a powerful reminder of the role played by non-elected institutions (the judiciary and the military alike) in the country’s political dynamics.

Sharif’s Dismissal Boosts Political Uncertainty in Pakistan

If Nawaz’s ouster turns him into a martyr for his voters, the PMLN’s vote bank will remain intact, and few members of the party are likely to defect. However, if this decision taints his image among his voters, weakening his support, ambitious members of the party are likely to defect to parties with better relations with the military, and thus better prospects for coming to power.

Deadlock over Doklam: The Sino-Indian standoff in Bhutan

The Chinese leadership may thus be emboldened to create carefully-managed crises “by targeting the peripheral, albeit highly symbolic, interests of its foreign opponents than to directly attack them.” The Chinese decision to reclaim territory it contests with Bhutan – arguably India’s closest ally – lends credence to this hypothesis.

The India–Pakistan nuclear rivalry at sea

Written by Brigadier Feroz Hassan Khan. As 2017 dawned, Pakistan, avowing ‘completion of the nuclear triad’ and a ‘credible second strike capability’, successfully test fired its first submarine-based nuclear-capable cruise missile—Babur-III—with a declared range of 450 kilometers. India had already introduced its nuclear-powered submarine Arihant, some four years back, which is capable of carrying about 12 …

India’s Maritime Strategy: What ‘the West’ Should Know

Written by Gurpreet Khurana. India’s latest maritime-military strategy titled Ensuring Secure Seas: Indian Maritime Security Strategy (Strategy-2015) released in 2015 has come at a crucial time in its relations with the major powers of the West. Never before in recent history has India’s geopolitical and security environment been so tenuous and uncertain, leading to a …

Kashmir: Between Entropy and Escalation

Written by Rohan John. The contested Muslim-majority state claimed by two nuclear-armed rivals, Jammu and Kashmir is the inadvertent collateral damage in this South Asian conflict and the canvas for an atomic showdown if not alleviated. Last year, Kashmir was wrought with violence which reached a new high with protests by Kashmiris against the occupation …

Airpower and War in the 21st Century

Contributed by Dr Bettina Renz. On 13th June 2014 a one-day cross-disciplinary workshop on airpower and war in the 21st century was held on the University of Nottingham’s Jubilee Campus. It was co-organised by the School of Politics and IR’s Centre for Security, Conflict and Terrorism (CST) and the University’s Institute for Aerospace Technology (IAT) …

Rights, Wrongs and Drones

IAPS was delighted to welcome Dr Peter Lee, Principal Lecturer in Military Ethics and Assistant Director (Academic) for Portsmouth Business School at Royal Air Force College Cranwell on the 6th February 2014.  Dr Lee gave a lecture on Rights, Wrongs and Drones: The Moral Standing of Remotely Piloted Aircraft Operations in Afghanistan and Pakistan. In …