West Asia Courtesy: takver/WikimediaCommons
3 December 2012

Prioritizing West Asia

India is tied to West Asia by economic, religious and political threads. The ongoing social and political flux in the region can have adverse consequences for India and requires a serious rethink of its foreign policy priorities. How can India insert itself usefully into this geopolitical cauldron?

Courtesy: Gigi Ibrahim/WikimediaCommons
27 November 2012

Israel-Hamas: Only an intermission

The series of Israeli offensives against Gaza, which began on November 4, ended when Egypt's new President Mohamed Morsi brokered a ceasefire between Hamas and the Israeli government on November 13. The possibility of this ceasefire holding up, however, seems remote.

obama second term_0 Courtesy: U.S. Navy
10 November 2012

The second term

U.S. President Barack Obama will certainly have the benefit of continuity in his second term, but he has a range of impending crises to address immediately - be it to avert the so-called fiscal cliff before the end of the year when automatic cuts kick in or plan for the military drawdown from Afghanistan.

obama redux Courtesy: Pete Souza/The White House
9 November 2012

Obama Redux: The view from India

Despite U.S. President Barack Obama’s re-election, a number of issues like the U.S.’s national debt, unemployment and the military withdrawal from Afghanistan need to be addressed. With these multiple national and global imperatives crowding his agenda, will Obama have any time for India?

Courtesy: The White House
7 November 2012

Obama 2: Diverse aspirations coalesce

The changing American demography worked in favour of the Democrats, but winning a re-election may be the easy part for U.S. President Barack Obama. He must now craft an agenda adequately bipartisan to pass legislation addressing the country economic issues.

obama win Courtesy: Hiperpato/WikimediaCommons
7 November 2012

Obama’s next four years

Though U.S. President Barack Obama was re-elected by a generous vote, he will continue to face the legislative gridlock of the past two years. How he acts in the coming weeks will tell us whether there is a newly-revitalised President in town, or the same one the world has got to know in the last four years.

obrom nd2 Courtesy: WikimediaCommons
6 November 2012

A choice without a difference

The electoral races in the US reflect the split down the middle in political affiliations of the people. Yet, no major change is expected. This election is about whether the wealthy in the United States can be asked to pay taxes at the same if not slightly higher rates as the middle class.

romney obama neelam Courtesy: Tktru,Calebrw/WikimediaCommons
5 November 2012

U.S. elections: a hand-to-hand fight

The race for the White House between President Barack Obama and Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney is so close, that the outcome could be anyone’s guess. This has resulted in the quality of the candidates' performance in the three Presidential debates being focused on for the first time.