Obituary: Yameen Rasheed
Yameen Rasheed (1988-2017), Gateway House contributor, blogger and activist, was always full of sharp insights about his country’s politics
Courtesy: Selvaraja Rajasegar
Courtesy: Selvaraja Rajasegar
Courtesy: Reuters
Bangladesh: security & soul-searching
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will visit India beginning April 7 at a time when her country is confronted with Daesh-inspired terrorism. In the interests of regional stability, it is critical that the two countries maintain a united front against extremism
Courtesy: Gateway House
IORA summit: sharing commonalities
The two decade-old Indian Ocean Rim Association holds its first ever summit next week. Maritime safety and security in the region is a paramount concern as also enhanced trade, but will the Blue Economy be included as a priority? Another area of concern is devising modalities for cooperation with dialogue partners, such as the United States, China and Japan
Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons
Minority report: a bleak road ahead?
Even nearly 70 years after independence, the people of Myanmar are struggling to complete nation-building and resolve the Rohingya issue. Is the million-strong community an ethnic group native to Myanmar or is it of South Asian origin, and, therefore, a part of Bangladesh? Evading the issue may not hasten national reconciliation
Courtesy: Flickr
Saudi prince: not quite a game changer?
Prince Salman’s accession to the throne after the death of Saudi King Abdullah on 23 January 2015 has been a game changer, both domestically and in West Asian politics. Within days, he sidelined rivals within the House of Saud, and took on Iran with a confrontational policy. But two years later, the results of his new strategy disappoint
Courtesy: Flickr/ResoluteSupportMedia
Moscow shifts Afghan stance: what next?
The Russians have concluded that the Afghan Taliban offer a better shield against the Islamic State than the old Northern Alliance. A negotiated settlement in Afghanistan could be achieved if Washington and New Delhi join Moscow, Beijing, Islamabad and Tehran in a joint effort.
Courtesy: 123RF
How ‘hawala’ impacts national security
On November 8, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced to India, the demonetisation of high-value currency notes, he specifically referred to the use of Hawala and fake Indian currency notes for terrorist financing. The hawala system to move funds globally for terrorist financing is huge, secretive, and layered—and a challenge for national security agencies.
Courtesy: India.com
Conflict resolution: be unpredictable
The Indian defence minister spoke – unexpectedly – of a doctrinal change in stance.
Courtesy: Google Earth
BRICS/BIMSTEC’s maritime portents
The recent BRICS summit and BIMSTEC outreach highlighted some laudable maritime endeavours linking geographically distant, emerging economies within the grouping. The BIMSTEC platform is also crucial to India's efforts to create a peaceful Bay of Bengal community through economic and cultural linkages.
Courtesy: Wikipedia
U.S.-Pakistan: still cosy after Uri
There has been a strengthening in the India-U.S. bilateral, which reached new heights with the signing of the LEMOA agreement in August, 2016. However, this strengthened bilateral has not resulted in a strong response to Pakistan by the U.S. Government.