Thursday, May 24, 2018

http://indiatogether.org/what-nuclear-weapons-have-done-to-us-op-ed

What nuclear weapons have done to us?

Ordinarily the title would be ‘What nuclear weapons have done for us?’ Nuclear enthusiasts would have us believe that we are more secure now than we were twenty years ago, when in May 1998 India broke out of the nuclear closet, forcing Pakistan’s hand too by month end.
The nuclear optimists would point out that there has been no war since. Even Kargil war was not quite a war. Operation Parakram that soon followed remained short of being called a war. Mumbai 26/11 was not followed up with a war. Deterrence has worked, and that is what nuclear weapons are for.
That nuclear deterrence has worked is Pakistan’s side of the story. Though aggressors in Kargil, they escaped lightly by only been thrown back. They warded off Operation Parakram and deterred war after 26/11.
India would loathe to accept that it has been deterred. It would point to Kargil being vacated without the need to go to war. Operation Parakram was but coercive diplomacy. After 26/11, war would have hurt our economic interests which were already under threat from global depression setting in by then.  
India has been voluble, since it needs to convince Pakistan that it is not deterred by Pakistan introducing tactical nuclear weapons into the subcontinent. A rather elaborate seminar at the army’s think tank Center for Land Warfare Studies was held in February at which operations in a nuclear environment were discussed in all domains – land, air, sea. The first session was devoted to what Pakistan hopes to do with its tactical nuclear weapons.
Presumably the rest of the seminar was on pressing on with the war, after Pakistan’s nuclear first use and India’s nuclear retaliation. Since the nuclear dimension was not slated for discussion, it is uncertain if the nuclear response by India was as promised – ‘massive’. Instead, if military operations were to continue after introduction of nuclear weapons into the conflict, it would suggest a nuclear strategy in which India will respond proportionately to Pakistan’s nuclear use.
What this suggests is that war continues to be a possibility, twenty years since overt nuclearization. 
In short, nuclear weapons appear to have made little difference in resolving the outstanding problems. War could well have broken out, but for Pakistan’s nuclear weapons. India’s nuclear weapons were unusable in their intended manner of use – ‘massive’ retaliation. However, India seems to have thought up ways to increase their utility.
A word about the China front is necessary since India cited the China threat as a cause for the Pokhran II tests. Twenty years of developments in missiles and nuclear submarines have not yet led to a reassuring second-strike capability, leaving India relatively vulnerable all through these years. Even so, India has stared down China twice over, at Chumar and lately at Doklam. In other words, India could be tough without nuclear weapons. Both India and China swear by No First Use – and India with good reason. It appears then that the China threat merely served as a cover for India to go nuclear for other reasons.
In short, there is not much that nuclear weapons’ possession has done for India. But there is much that they have done to India. The need for their management has led to an accumulation of power at a power node - the National Security Adviser - that has no mention in the Constitution and has grave implications for a democratic system based on ministerial responsibility and cabinet accountability to parliament.
The power over the weapons is vested largely with the national security adviser (NSA), an individual who is appointed by an executive fiat. As seen from our meandering national security policy under the incumbent NSA – whether it be in relation to Pakistan, China, Kashmir or terrorism – individuals matter. National security management over the past four years has been ideologically driven. This does not lend confidence that nuclear weapon use will be informed by sound strategic thinking
It is no secret that India’s higher level defence structure is dysfunctional. NSA’s foray four years too late into some correction, through setting up of a defence planning committee, is chimerical since it is merely a measure to substitute for the chief of defence staff, a key figure missing in India’s system. As India appears to be moving towards nuclear warfighting, it needs a military man at the coordinating hub, not an NSA, and certainly not the current one with tactical brilliance but known deficit in strategic good sense.
In any case it is not only the Indian system that India needs worrying about. It stands to suffer as much from the pathologies of the system in Pakistan, which Indian strategists never fail to point out is rather vulnerable to threats ranging from jihadists to praetorian. 
The twentieth anniversary is a good time to look at the usefulness of the nuclear weapons. They have not enhanced Indian security and instead the ongoing shift to making them more relevant to security by increasing their usability makes for an increase in Indian insecurity.
This brings to fore the more significant aspect of what nuclear weapons have done to us. They have been so normalized that any anti-nuclear movement is left to activists and to local opposition to nuclear plants. Indians have abdicated control over their own security and, indeed, destiny.

Thursday, March 15, 2018

http://indiatogether.org/dissension-in-the-top-brass-op-ed

Dissension in the top brass?

An opinion piece in The Tribune referring to the subtext of the statements of two army commanders speaking at a seminar late last month at Punjab University, Chandigarh, calls for the army chief Bipin Rawat to listen to those statements and pull himself back from going down a political route and taking the army down the same route with him.
At the Chandigarh seminar, the head of the army’s western command said that the idea of a two-front war is not ‘smart’. The army chief had dwelt on the concept of ‘two and half front war’ with the Doklam crisis as context mid last year. The second general, its training command head, called for activation of a political track with Pakistan. He seemed to suggest that even though the Line of Control (LoC) has been activated for some three years now, there is nothing to show for the political utility of the military operations there.
 His latest remarks in the context of elections in three north eastern states drew attention to the threat of illegal immigration. While it cannot be said that BJP’s good showing in the elections was a result of those remarks but the timing unfortunately rules in the possibility that they were designed to be helpful. The timing has a precedence. In the run up to the Karnataka elections, the Chief went down to Coorg and pitched for the Bharat Ratna for a son-of-the-soil, Field Marshal Cariappa. His comments were criticised  by the commentariat and assorted politicians.
Over his tenure, the army chief has through his public remarks been rather useful for the ruling dispensation. Not only is the army chief voluble, but his utterances are political. This explains the latitude he has been given to discourse on aspects that are much outside the army’s domain.
The two army commanders were speaking at a seminar on Pakistan. Drawing analogy from Pakistan’s case, the training command head had this to say, “This (Pakistani praetorianism) is in stark contrast to India where the armed forces owe allegiance to the Constitution, and not to any party, person or religion (italics added).”
This follows the joint doctrine (p.2) of the armed forces that reiterated the national interest as being: ‘To preserve the democratic, secular and federal character of the Indian Republic.’ This is a corollary to the national values encapsulated in the documents as: ‘sovereignty, socialism secularism, democracy, republican character, justice, liberty, equality, fraternity, human dignity, unity and integrity of our Nation, respect for our diversity, peaceful co-existence, pluralism and tolerance and international peace defined by a just international order.’
The training command head said as much, likening Pakistan to a mirror on the wall, which India needs to look at so as not to “make the same mistakes, particularly in light of growing radicalisation and intolerance within our own society over mundane issues.”
An unseemly political proximity is visible between the army and the right wing. While traditionally only personages of national stature are allowed to speak at the military’s haloed training institutions, a captive military audience is now being treated to talks by cultural nationalists such as Zee News anchor, Sudhir  Chaudhary, at the staff college at Wellington and former major and current day Republic TV host Gaurav  Arya at the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun. Former Chief VK Singh donned his true colours by taking up the RSS uniform.
The extent to which the strategic path adopted by the army is sustainable in strategic terms has been questioned, not just by the General heading perhaps the most consequential command in case of conventional war, but also by a retired General who served as military adviser in the national security council system of  the previous administration.
The army chief in the context of nothing specific had at a conference this winter called for keeping the army out of politics. It is unlikely the advice was for himself. Army’s discipline and sense of obedience cannot be an excuse to ignore the change in its public profile brought about by a Chief, deliberately given rather a loose rope by a self-interested government.
The two army commanders need to pay heed to the subtext of their own remarks and, at the closed door conference of army commanders, discuss the new phenomenon of the army flirting with politics. Hopefully a Chief suitably cautioned by his peers would then steer a strictly neutral course, particularly as national elections are on the horizon.

Thursday, January 11, 2018

FROM WITHIN: REFLECTIONS ON INDIA’S ARMY

The book comprises unpublished writings of Ali Ahmed from his time in uniform. The author served in the Indian army for two decades. His reflections in the period that did not make it into print ...

ON INDIA’S MILITARY: WRITINGS FROM WITHIN

The book comprises the published writings in service journals of Ali Ahmed while serving in the army. They cover the two decades on either side of the turn of the century, thereby providing a win...

INDIA’S NATIONAL SECURITY IN THE LIBERAL LENS

Ali Ahmed continues his engagement with the themes of his previous two books, On War in South Asia and On Peace in South Asia (both CinnamonTeal 2014), specifically on issues related to IndiaR...

ON PEACE IN SOUTH ASIA

After doffing his military uniform, Ali Ahmed joined New Delhi’s vibrant strategic community as a researcher in a leading think tank, a doctoral scholar and later on the faculty of a centra...

ON WAR IN SOUTH ASIA

The book comprises Ali Ahmed’s writings on strategic affairs and military matters in the period 2008-14. It comprises commentaries on conventional warfare and nuclear deterrence. The work i...

Wednesday, January 10, 2018

Wednesday, December 20, 2017

http://indiatogether.org/are-india-s-nuclear-weapons-in-safe-hands-op-ed 

Are India’s nuclear weapons in safe hands?

The war of words between US President Donald Trump and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un has done as much as the award of the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize to International Campaign for Abolition of Nuclear Weapons, in bringing focus squarely on the nuclear dangers this year. Commentators have it that the standoff between Trump and Un brought our world closest to a nuclear exchange since the Cuban missile crisis.
This because the nuclear button in both cases is under the finger of an erratic strongman. Looking at the psychological makeup of the key nuclear decision makers in making sure that nuclear weapons/buttons are in safe hands is not illegitimate, and may possibly be the right place to look.
The situation in the current White House appears to be resembling the Nixon years. A recent book on Trump’s mental and psychological health, The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump: 27 Psychiatrists and Mental Health Experts Assess a President, has led to questioning whether the nuclear ‘football’ – as the proverbial briefcase with the nuclear button is known - can be entrusted to him.
This apparently prompted the apex level commander, General Hyten, of United States Strategic Command, to let on that he will resist any ‘illegal’ orders for nuclear strike from his commander- in- chief President Trump. The general said that he would inform his supreme commander of the shortcoming in his orders and suggest rational, legal options. This is of course good to know, but that is to rely on the good sense of the American military.
After a decade and half of American wars on this continent, such a belief can only amount to naivety. Nevertheless, the upshot is that cracks in nuclear deterrence theory also appear at individual level, and most problematically so.  
How’s the case closer home
Indian nuclear strategists would be inclined to give Prime Minister Narendra Modi a perfect ten, not because all of them have been closet cultural nationalists so far, but because they have been yelling hoarse all along that India lacks a strategic culture. This absence, to them, has led to Indians – read Hindus – being perceived as lacking aggression. This trope has been calling for more ‘resolve’ in Indian nuclear decision makers or exhibition of such resolve. Thus, the nuclear hawks were unhappy when the mild and professorial Dr. Manmohan Singh had the nuclear briefcase.
Since the arrival of Modi, the nuclear strategists have no doubt been happier, knowing that the political decision maker boasts a ‘56 inch’ chest. Modi’s image as a strongman has long been in the making. Early on, Muslim terrorists apparently out to get Modi, including in one case a girl barely out of her teens, were gunned down by Gujarat Policemen in staged encounters. Most recently, with his demonetization decision, Modi has demonstrated his decision making ability and ‘resolve’ to the satisfaction of nuclear strategists. To them, India has finally got a nuclear decision maker worth its nuclear doctrine.
To nuclear strategists Modi being advised by Ajit Doval, the Chanakyan grandmaster, makes deterrence stronger. Doval is the civilian master of a military outfit, the Strategic Forces Command, in his capacity as the head of the executive council of the Nuclear Command Authority. He spent some seven years as a spook in Pakistan. This might explain his obsession with Pakistan and account for India’s topsy-turvy policies for Pakistan. That the accountability of nuclear weapons decision making lies with the duo, only heightens fears rather than allay them.
Modi’s animus against India’s Muslims had been in full throttle as his pocket borough Gujarat appeared to be slipping out of his grip in the run-up to the recent elections. He had implausibly but typically made the connection, insinuating that Pakistan is out to meddle in India’s elections. Apparently, his predecessor, the mild and professorial Dr. Manmohan Singh was complicit in attempting to install a Muslim chief minister with Pakistani support. The anti-Muslim bias is reflected in Modi’s Kashmir policy, that has Operation All Out as its motif, and his hardline Pakistan policy. The Afghanistan policy – an offshoot of the Pakistan policy – is one of proxy war with Pakistan in that benighted country.
This combination of a resolute decision maker and an insane nuclear doctrine that has the Muslim state, Pakistan, at its crosshairs, implies that the imbecile phraseology – ‘massive’ retaliation - in India’s nuclear doctrine will resonate with Modi. While no less destructive options will be likely given by his chief security adviser, Doval.
To the nuclear strategists, this is how the nuclear doctrine is designed to work, and, therefore, their answer to the question asked as the title of this article would be in the affirmative. They purposely do not share with the nuclear decision maker and the public what will happen after such a strike. On execution of ‘massive’ retaliation, India will likely take similar levels of  strikes back, lasting the fallout but a few days longer.
Consequently, the pronounced personality traits that make nuclear strategists warm up to Modi are a handicap, particularly since Modi’s prejudices need factoring in.
Thus the short answer to the question in the title then is, ‘Not quite!’

Saturday, November 11, 2017

Writings ‘Firdaus Ahmed’
Books
·        Think South Asia
·        Subcontinental Musings
·        South Asia: In it Together
o   (all published by CinnamonTeal)
Articles/Commentaries/Op-eds (indiatogether.org; Kashmir Times; countercurrents.org; thecitizen.in; milligazette.com; India Opines; Tehelka; ipcs.org)
Topics – National security, majoritarianism, minority security, Kashmir, India-Pakistan, peace and conflict strategy, internal security, national politics, counter insurgency, nuclear doctrine, Indian army, civil-military relations
Ser
Title
Published in
Date
1
When Ideology corrupts Strategy
Kashmir Times
10 Oct 17
2
The myth of a nuclear peace
http://indiatogether.org/the-myth-of-a-nuclear-peace-op-ed
20 Sep 17
3
Kashmir: From conflict management to a conflict resolution?
Kashmir Times
14 Aug 17
4
In defence of Hamid Ansari
Kashmir Times
16 Aug 17
5
Mapping India’s doctrinal movement
http://indiatogether.org/mapping-india-s-doctrinal-movement-op-ed
30 Jun 17
6
Reading the Army Chief's words
Kashmir Times
8 Jun 17
7
Kashmir's scenery makes its way to the 'hinterland'
Kashmir Times
9 May 17
8
The hovering nuclear clouds
http://indiatogether.org/the-hovering-nuclear-clouds-op-ed
Kashmir Times
25 Apr 17
9
Terror: More serious than most know
Kashmir Times
11 Mar 17
10
COAS selection and the doctrine of ‘relative ease of working’ with
Kashmir Times
25 Dec 16
11
The Parrikar thesis
http://indiatogether.org/the-parrikar-thesis-op-ed
14 Dec 16
12
The Bhopal episode and the return of the hostage theory
The Milli Gazette Online Published Online: Nov 19, 2016
http://www.milligazette.com/news/15086-the-bhopal-episode-and-the-return-of-the-hostage-theory
19 Nov 16
13
The myth of ‘strategic restraint’

Kashmir Times
16 Oct 16
14
India-Pakistan: In a dialogue of sorts
Kashmir Times
23 Sep 16
15
A War at Hand
Kashmir Times
15 May 16
16
World War II redux in the nuclear age
http://indiatogether.org/world-war-ii-redux-in-the-nuclear-age-op-ed
8 May 16
17
Can India provide a new lens to the ISIS challenge in Syria?

http://indiatogether.org/can-india-provide-a-new-lens-to-the-isis-challenge-in-syria-op-ed
3 Mar 16
18
After left-liberals, Muslim are next

The Milli Gazette Online http://www.milligazette.com/news/13822-after-left-liberals-muslim-are-next
23 Feb 16
19
Gen Rao’s place in the history of Kashmir
Kashmir Times
5 Feb 16
20
Modi worsens India’s doctrinal muddle
http://indiatogether.org/modi-worsens-india-s-doctrinal-muddle-op-ed
16 Jan 16
21
Ram Madhav's Akhand Bharat and Modi’s Pakistan policy

http://www.milligazette.com/news/13543-ram-madhavs-akhand-bharat-and-modis-pakistan-policy
12 Jan 16
22
The conspiracy angle to the Pathankot episode
Kashmir Times
7 Jan 16
23
Fighting the ISIS: Why India should measure its steps
http://indiatogether.org/fighting-the-isis-op-ed  
17 Dec 15
24
The Chennai floods and India’s strategic underside
http://www.countercurrents.org/ahmed161215.htm
16 Dec 15
25
India-Pak bonhomie: Can it last?

Kashmir Times
15 Dec 15
26
The Paris attacks and India’s Muslims

milligazette.com

1-15 Dec 15
27
Is Mani Shankar Aiyar right?
Kashmir Times
19 Nov 15
28
Pakistani “idiocy”: A general gets it half right
http://indiatogether.org/a-general-gets-it-half-right-op-ed
16 Nov 15
29
Whither Modi, and, at one remove, India?
Vol. 16 No. 21 Issue Serial # 379 www.milligazette.com
1-15 Nov 15
30
The military musical chairs

http://indiatogether.org/military-musical-chairs-op-ed
23 Oct 15
31
Getting practical over an important report
Kashmir Times
15 Sep 15

32
Why Ramchandra Guha speaks too soon
http://www.milligazette.com/news/12973-partion-muslim-of-india-why-ramchandra-guha-speaks-too-soon
9 Sep 15
33
What is really driving India’s Pakistan strategy?
http://indiatogether.org/india-s-pakistan-strategy-op-ed
4 Sep 15
34
A Viewpoint: Home Minister Brings ‘Saffron Terror’ Back on the Agenda


http://www.thecitizen.in/NewsDetail.aspx?Id=4715&A/Viewpoint:/Home/Minister/Brings/%E2%80%98Saffron/Terror%E2%80%99//Back/on/the/Agenda
10 Aug 15
35
Look who’s doing yoga now!
http://indiatogether.org/government-military-relationship-op-ed
5 Aug 15
36
Kashmir: Not the moment for a tryst
kashmirtimes.com
1 Aug 15
37
India-Israel: Increasingly Birds of a Feather       
http://www.countercurrents.org/ahmed260715.htm
26 Jul 15

38
The seeds of India’s ‘tough guy’ image
http://indiatogether.org/seeds-of-india-s-tough-guy-image-op-ed
18 Jun 15
39
Kashmir and India’s Muslims
Kashmir Times
10 Jun 15
40
How deep does our prejudice run?
http://indiatogether.org/anti-muslim-prejudice-bias-in-society-and-military-op-ed
29 May 15
41
Contesting Mushrif's thesis — "Other side of Modi Muslims should know"
http://www.milligazette.com/news/12328-contesting-mushrif-s-other-side-of-modi-thesis-indian-Muslims
May 07, 2015
42
China policy: Will economics trump the military stance?
http://indiatogether.org/army-strategy-on-china-and-modi-visit-op-ed
27 Apr 15
43
Undoing injustice to Kashmiri Pandits
Kashmir Times
25 Apr 15

44
What will it mean to have India as a ‘security provider’?

http://indiatogether.org/indian-ocean-us-pakistan-new-strategic-doctrine-under-modi-op-ed
23 Mar 15
45
Kashmir: Fifty years since 1965 War
Kashmir Times
28 Feb 15
46
Deconstructing Mr. Modi’s speech

http://www.milligazette.com/news/11792-deconstructing-narendra-modis-speech-india
19 Feb 15

47
Strategy for the Modi era
http://www.milligazette.com/print/issue/16-28-february-2015
15 Feb 15
48
Challenges of the brass in a political minefield

http://indiatogether.org/army-brass-caught-in-political-minefield-under-bjp-government-op-ed
9 Feb 15
49
Looking Back a Quarter Century On
Kashmir Times
20 Jan 15
50
What the maritime 'non-incident' on New Year’s Eve tells us
http://indiatogether.org/india-pakistan-relations-and-security-strategy-in-the-light-of-terror-boat-incident-government
13 Jan 15
51
What is a moderate Indian Muslim to do? @Chetan_Bhagat
http://www.milligazette.com/news/11503-what-is-a-moderate-india-muslim-to-do-chetan_bhagat
29 Dec 14

52
Where veterans refuse to give up, what does the future hold?

http://indiatogether.org/influence-and-politics-of-veterans-in-the-indian-army-op-ed
19 Dec 14
53
The pebbles ahead in Mr. Modi’s comfortable ride
Milligazette
16-31 Dec 14
54
India-Pakistan with Kashmir in between
Kashmir Times
11 Dec 14
55
Mr. Modi, pebbles ahead!

http://indiaopines.com/narendra-modi-agenda/
8 Dec 14
56
Is the army court’s verdict on the Machhil killings enough?

http://indiatogether.org/recent-court-verdict-on-machhil-army-killings-afspa-and-military-justice-op-ed
17 Nov 14
57
Hooda Walks The Talk
Kashmir Times
10 Nov 14
58
Can PM Modi pull it off?

http://indiatogether.org/narendra-modi-government-security-defence-strategy-and-risks-government
31 Oct 14
59
Mr. Modi's next stunt
http://www.milligazette.com/news/11189-mr-modis-next-stunt-National-Unity-Day-Sardar-Patel
1-15 Nov 14
60
Politicisation of security and its consequences
Kashmir Times
15 Oct 14
61
Sunburn warning for India’s day in the sun
http://indiatogether.org/india-s-foreign-policy-under-modi-op-ed
21 Sep 14
62
What is Mr. Modi's Kashmir strategy?
Kashmir Times
9 Aug 14
63
Messiah Modi: What to make of him?
http://www.milligazette.com/print/issue/1-15-september-2014
1-15 Sep14

64
Indo-Pak talks: Getting past the eyewash
http://indiatogether.org/the-real-reason-behind-india-pakistan-talks-being-called-off-op-ed
21 Aug 14
65
The Fear That Does Not Speak Its Name
http://www.countercurrents.org/ahmed200814.htm
20 Aug 14
66
Modi forges a commitment trap

Kashmir Times
20 Aug 14
67
Majoritarian terrorism: The resounding silence
Milligazette: p. 5
16-31 Aug 14
68
Normalisation of the terror narrative: The response
http://www.milligazette.com/print/issue/1-15-august-2014
1-15 Aug 14
69
The echo of Gaza closer home

Kashmir Times http://caravandaily.com/portal/echoes-of-gaza-closer-home/
1 Aug 14
70
What the PM did not say out loud at Badami Bagh
Kashmir Times
16 Jul 14
71
Will Modi relook at ‘massive’ retaliation in India’s nuclear doctrine?

http://indiatogether.org/modi-relook-at-massive-retaliation-in-nuclear-doctrine-op-ed
24 Jun 14
72
A Second Modi-Sharif Meet  Required to Kickstart Bilateral Talks
http://www.thecitizen.in/a-second-modi-sharif-meet-required-to-kickstart-bilateral-talks/
8 Jun 14
73
What Mr. Doval as NSA means for Indian national security

http://www.milligazette.com/news/10521-what-mr-ajit-doval-as-nsa-means-for-indian-national-security
http://caravandaily.com/portal/the-spy-who-came-in-from-the-cold/
Kashmir Times
1 Jun 14
74
Politicisation: In the context of the Indian military
http://www.thecitizen.in/politicisation-in-the-context-of-the-indian-military/
May 23, 2014

75
Life under Modi

Milligazette, Vol. 15 No.9 Issue Serial # 343
1-15 May 14
76
Strategising for the Modi Era

http://www.milligazette.com/news/10414-strategising-for-the-modi-era-indian-muslims
17 May 14

77
India's brass: What the controversy misses
Kashmir Times
9 May 14
78
Second Guessing Modi's Kashmir Policy
Kashmir Times
11 Apr 14
79
What will Modi do next?


http://www.countercurrents.org/ahmed110414.htm
http://indiaopines.com/modi-next/
11 Apr 14
80
Getting ‘practical’ on No-First-Use
http://indiatogether.org/practical-steps-for-a-nuclear-free-world-op-ed
http://indiaopines.com/topics/blogs/
10 Apr 14
81
What Did Manmohan Singh Mean By ‘Disastrous’?

http://www.countercurrents.org/ahmed170314.htm
http://www.milligazette.com/print/issue/16-28-february-2014
17 Mar 14

82
One gaffe too many

http://indiatogether.org/gaffes-in-india-s-nuclear-doctrine-op-ed
17 Mar 14
83
Pathribal: Back in the news
Kashmir Times
29 Jan 14
84
The next polls and beyond
Milligazette
1-15 Jan 14
85
The debate between the generals

Kashmir Times
13 Dec 13
86
Ideologues as 'strategists'

Kashmir Times
28 Nov 13
87
The relevance of Vanzara's letter
http://www.indiatogether.org/2013/nov/fah-resign.htm
19 Nov 13
88
Muslim absence from the strategic space
http://www.milligazette.com/print/issue/16-31-october-2013
18 Nov 13
89
The expansionist agenda
An unacknowledged vested interest in a disturbed Kashmir
Kashmir Times
31 Oct 13
90
Soldiers, not servants
http://www.indiatogether.org/2013/oct/fah-soldiers.htm
19 Oct 13
91
Doing more with the military
Milligazette
1-15 Sep 13
92
The Military At The High Table?
http://www.tehelka.com/the-military-at-the-high-table/?singlepage=1
13 Oct 13
93
Modi And The Military: Not Quite An Innocent Beginning

http://www.ummid.com/news/2013/September/21.09.2013/modi-and-military.html
countercurrents.org
21 Sep 13

94
Vanzara gets it right: The meaning for J&K
Kashmir Times
16 Sep 13
95
An ambush loaded with meaning
http://www.indiatogether.org/2013/aug/fah-ambush.htm
13 Aug 13
96
The LoC incident calls for self-regulation by the army
Kashmir Times
13 Aug 13
97
Elections 2014: The Worst Case Scenario
http://www.milligazette.com/print/issue/16-31-july-2013
16-31 Jul 13
98
Distancing from Cloak and Dagger
Kashmir Times
18 Jul 13
99
What if Modi makes it to Race Course road
http://www.milligazette.com/print/issue/1-15-july-2013
13 Jul 13
100
Implications of a NaMo foreign policy
Kashmir Times
11 Jun 13
101
Indo-AfPak: Chanakya To The Rescue?
http://tehelka.com/indo-afpak-chanakya-to-the-rescue/
25 May 13
102
Daulat Beg Oldi: More than a storm in a tea cup
Kashmir Times
13 May 13
103
Countering insurgency and sexual violence
Kashmir Times
8 May 13
104
Afzal Guru: The Man Who Knew Too Much
http://www.milligazette.com/print/issue/1-15-march-2013
1-15 Mar 13

105
India’s security under Modi

Kashmir Times
http://www.countercurrents.org/ahmed140413.htm
11 Apr 13
106
A Good School For Maqbool

http://www.indiatogether.org/2013/feb/fah-schools.htm
11 Feb 13
107
The IB Chief: A matter of pride
Milligazette
16-31 Dec 12
108
The new 'normal' at the border

http://www.indiatogether.org/2013/jan/fah-newnormal.htm
23 Jan 13
109
The importance of being Asif Ibrahim

http://www.indiatogether.org/2012/dec/fah-ibrahim.htm
18 Dec 12
110
Taking on Mr. Modi’s Chief Cheerleader: Chetan Bhagat



http://www.milligazette.com/news/4812-taking-on-gujarat-narendra-modis-chief-cheerleader-chetan-bhagat-india
http://twocircles.net/2012dec03/narendra_modi%E2%80%99s_new_cheerleader_chetan_bhagat.html
1 Dec 12


3 Dec 12
111
The strange case of 2nd Lt. Kalia
http://www.indiatogether.org/2012/nov/fah-kargil.htm
29 Nov 12
112
The unfolding gameplan of majoritarian extremists
http://www.milligazette.com/news/4126-the-unfolding-gameplan-of-majoritarian-extremists-india
1 Oct 12
113
More than just a visit
http://www.milligazette.com/news/4281-more-than-just-a-visit
27 Sep 12

114
Reaching beyond its brief
http://www.indiatogether.org/2012/sep/fah-task.htm
10 Sep 12
115
A secure minority, for a secure nation 

http://www.indiatogether.org/2012/aug/fah-mussec.htm
20 Aug 12
116
Not So Easy, Mr. Modi


http://www.milligazette.com/print/issue/16-31-august-2012
http://twocircles.net/2012aug01/not_so_easy_mr_modi.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Twocirclesnet-IndianMuslim+%28TwoCircles.net+-+Indian+Muslim+News%29&utm_content=Yahoo%21+Mail
31 July 12
117
Chetan Bhagat: Caught At It Again

http://www.milligazette.com/print/issue/16-31-july-2012
16-31 July 12, p. 10
118
The fog of jungle warfare

http://www.indiatogether.org/2012/jul/fah-crpf.htm
7 Jul 12
119
Catching up with the SIT chief

http://www.milligazette.com/news/3701-catching-up-with-the-sit-chief
23 Jun 12
120
Service Strength: Expanding too fast?
http://www.indiatogether.org/2012/may/fah-expand.htm
23 May 12
121
Civil-Military Relations: Uncivil war in South Block
http://www.indiatogether.org/2012/apr/fah-civil.htm
5 Apr 12
122
Civil-Military Relations: An age-old lesson
http://www.indiatogether.org/2012/feb/fah-dob2.htm
22  Feb 12
123
The 'Age' of misjudgment
http://www.indiatogether.org/2012/jan/fah-chief.htm
20 Jan 12
124
Defence Bureaucracy: To specialise or not?
http://www.indiatogether.org/2011/dec/fah-special.htm
26 Dec 11
125
Rescuing Tribal India: The Nagaland Model
http://www.ipcs.org/article/india/rescuing-tribal-india-the-nagaland-model-3505.html
#3505, 5 Dec 11

126
AFSPA In J&K: Why Should It Go?
http://www.ipcs.org/article/india/afspa-in-jk-why-should-it-go-3483.html

#3483, 3 November 2011
127
Mr. Bhagat: Please get off our backs, will you!
http://www.milligazette.com/news/2349-mr-chetan-bhagat-please-get-off-our-indian-muslims-backs-will-you
25 Sep 2011
128
A Reply for Mr. Narendra Modi


http://www.milligazette.com/news/2347-an-open-reply-to-modi-s-open-letter-gujarat-narendra-modi-riots-indian-muslims
20 Sep 11
129
An open reply to Modi's open letter
milligazette.com
18 Sep 11
130
Blasting The Terror Narrative
milligazette.com
10 Sep 11
131
Terror Investigations 
Shall we imprison everyone?
http://www.indiatogether.org/2011/sep/fah-terror.htm
10 Sep 11
132
Dear General, Please Stay Out Of Politics
Tehelka Magazine, Vol 8, Issue 36
10 Sep 2011
133
Interrogating Security Expansionism in India

http://www.ipcs.org/article/india/interrogating-security-expansionism-in-india-3441.html
#3441, 23 Aug 11

134
Nuclear Weapons:
Whose command? Whose control?
http://www.indiatogether.org/2011/aug/fah-control.htm 
13 Aug 11
135
Indo-Pak Talks : Negotiate in good faith 
http://www.indiatogether.org/2011/jul/fah-negotiate.htm
19 Jul 11
136
Compellence, Deterrence Or Defence?: Saxena Task Force And India’s Defence Reforms
http://www.ipcs.org/article/india/compellence-deterrence-or-defence-saxena-task-force-and-indias-defence-3418.html
27 Jun 11

137
Defence reforms: The next phase 
http://www.indiatogether.org/2011/jun/fah-saxena.htm
24 Jun 11
138
Unity in militarism 
http://www.indiatogether.org/2011/may/fah-pai.htm

6 May 11
139
After Osama - Vii: Should New Delhi Engage Pakistan Or ‘Wait And Watch’?
ipcs.org
5 May 11
140
China in The Strategic Debate
indiatogether.org
27 Apr 11
141
The Gujarat Revelations
Milli Gazette
25 Apr 11
142
India-Pak: The long road still ahead
indiatogether.org
31 Mar 11
143
Getting A Peace Movement Going
http://www.eurasiareview.com/22032011-getting-a-peace-movement-going-analysis/
18 Mar 11
144
Revisiting Intelligence Reform
http://www.ipcs.org/article/india/revisiting-intelligence-reform-3338.html
4 Mar 11
145
Indo-Pak: What Holds India Up?
chowk.com
1 Mar 11
146
What if Pakistan implodes?
indiatogether.org
28 Feb 11
147
India-US: Manufacture of a partner 
http://www.indiatogether.org/2011/jan/fah-partner.htm 
31 Jan 11
148
Pakistan: Divining a Way
chowk.com
29 Jan 11
149
The Indian Army: Organizational Changes In The Offing
ipcs.org

25 Jan 11
150
The coming decade of nuclear risk
chowk.com
30 Dec 10
152
The Army's right to its opinion 
www.indiatogether.org
29 Dec 10
153
Blast From The Past - The Varanasi Explosion
ipcs.org

10 Dec 10
154
The Debate In Obama’s Wake
ipcs.org
2 Dec 10
155
Strategic community: Muddling along
www.indiatogether.org
30 Nov 10
156
Book review 
First Draft: Witness to the Making of Modern India
http://www.ipcs.org/books-review/india/first-draft-witness-to-the-making-of-modern-india-264.html
13 Oct 10
157
Book Review
Madhusree Mukerjee, Churchill’s Secret War: The British Empire and the Ravaging of India during World War II
indiatogether.org
http://www.indiatogether.org/2010/oct/fah-churchill.htm


28 Sep 10
158
AfPak: Beginning of the End?
ipcs.org
28 Sep 10 
159
US-India-China: The tangled triangle 
indiatogether.org
31 Aug 10 
160
India’s Grand Strategy: On Track
ipcs.org
28 Aug 10
161
Indo-Pak Dialogue : Talk another day 
indiatogether.org
Jul 10
162
Soldiers in our own images 
indiatogether.org
June 2010
163
Tackling Naxalism 
indiatogether.org
May 2010
164
AFSPA: Between battle lines 
indiatogether.org
Apr 10
165
Defence Purchases 
The government versus the military
indiatogether.org
March 2010
166
Surgical strikes: Missing the mark 

indiatogether.org
January 2010
167
Indian Army: Much hullaballoo, little cause 
indiatogether.org
December 2009
168
New Focus On Kashmir 
Our view, their view, the world-view
indiatogether.org
Nov 09
169
Anti-Naxal Operations 
A Job For An Infantryman 
indiatogether.org
October 2009
170
Arsenals 
The nuclear numbers game 
indiatogether.org
September 2009
171
Pre-Empting War 
Wanted: A peace movement 
indiatogether.org
August 2009
172
10 Years Later 
Making Kargil serve a purpose 
indiatogether.org
July 2009
173
Military Strategy 
Looking at China, missing Pakistan 
indiatogether.org
June 2009
174
Security Agenda 
Inward lens for incoming government 
indiatogether.org
May 2009
175
Endless Strife 
Awakening the somnolent state 
indiatogether.org
April 2009
176
The coming fateful decisions 
indiatogether.org
March 2009
177
2009: A preview of security issues 

indiatogether.org
January 2009
178
After The Attacks 
An indirect response to terror 
indiatogether.org
December 2008
179
Indian Army: How deep is the rot? 
indiatogether.org
November 2008
180
Military cooperation with the US: A mixed bag 
indiatogether.org
October 2008
181
In Muslim India, an internal battle 
indiatogether.org
September 2008
182
Mid-year chakravyuh 
indiatogether.org
August 2008
183
The Security Establishment :
Making nuclear sense 
indiatogether.org
July 2008
184
Political History 
Is Vox Populi good enough? 
indiatogether.org
April 2008
185
Nuclear Weapons 
Successful deterrence? Hardly. 
indiatogether.org
February 2008
186
Bhutto Assasination 
Internal security agenda for the new year 
indiatogether.org
January 2008
187
Expansion in Indian nuclear theology 
indiatogether.org
November 2007
188
The Nagaland model for Kashmir 
indiatogether.org
September 2007
189
War In The Subcontinent 
This summer, at a border near you 
indiatogether.org
Mar 07
190
Indian Army: crisis within 
indiatogether.org
January 2007
191
Pre-Emptive War 
Lessons from recent wars 
indiatogether.org
September 2006
192
Grand manoeuvre, yes, but to what end? 
indiatogether.org
July 2006
193
Politicisation and the Indian military 
indiatogether.org
April 2006
194
Secularism And The State 
Muslim headcount: A useful controversy 
indiatogether.org
March 2006
195
Demilitarisation 
Security agenda: 2006 and beyond
indiatogether.org
December 2005
196
War Games 
Of nukes and counter-nukes 
indiatogether.org
October 2005
197
Book Review: Second Strike and false security 
In Second Strike: Arguments about Nuclear War in South Asia.
indiatogether.org
Aug 05
198
Indo-Pak Peace 
Political courage, and the next step
indiatogether.org
May 2005
199
War Games 
An illusory battleground 
indiatogether.org
March 2005
200
 Hail to the new chief 
indiatogether.org
Dec 04
201
 Preparing for the wrong war 
indiatogether.org
Oct 04
202
AFSPA - Special powers, mixed results 
indiatogether.org
Sep 04
203
 A new security agenda 
indiatogether.org
Jun 04
204
 The calculus of 'Cold start' 
indiatogether.org
May 04
205
 Chief of Defense : Implications
indiatogether.org
Jan 04
206
 Pakistan: Not yet history 
indiatogether.org
Dec 03
207
 A national confidence syndrome 
indiatogether.org
Nov 03
208
 Missing the security target 
indiatogether.org
Oct 03
209
 Lies in the name of 'security' 
indiatogether.org
Sep 03
210
 Op Parakram: Must remain 'unfinished' 
indiatogether.org
Aug 03
211
 Op Sarp Vinash: Questions in search of answers 
indiatogether.org
Jul 03
212
PM peace initiative: Much ado? 
indiatogether.org
Jun 03
213
 Lessons from Baghdad 
indiatogether.org
May 03
214
 Kashmir after Nadimarg 
indiatogether.org
Apr 03
215
 Limited nuclear war, limitless anxiety 
indiatogether.org
Mar 03
216
 Realism: A debt we can do without 
indiatogether.org
Feb 03
217
 Indo-Pak: Arms control and disarmament 
indiatogether.org
Jan 03
218
 Time for policy re-orientation 
indiatogether.org
Dec 02
219
 Kashmir - the way forward 
indiatogether.org

220
 The Indian bid for Great Powerdom 
indiatogether.org
Sep 02
221
 Muslim India - A liberal perspective
indiatogether.org
Aug 02
222
Jammu and Kashmir: Need for a Political Solution
ipcs.org
20 Jul 10
224
Countering the Naxal Threat-IV: Military as an Option?
ipcs.org
21 Jun 10
225
Revisiting ‘1971’
ipcs.org
21 May 10
226
The Bright Side of ‘Asymmetric Escalation’
ipcs.org
5 Apr 10
227
Questioning India’s military trajectory
ipcs.org
23 Feb 10
228
India at 60: Acquiring Escape Velocity?
ipcs.org
24 Jan 10
229
Making Obama's War Also India's
ipcs.org
5 Dec 09
230
An Issue in Civil-Military Relations
ipcs.org
4 Nov 09
231
Disarmament in South Asia
ipcs.org
11 Oct 09
232
Emulating the US
ipcs.org
12 Sep 09
233
The 'Vision Thing'
ipcs.org

234
Kargil: Ten Years On
ipcs.org
25 Jul 09
235
 From ‘No First Use’ to ‘No Nuclear Use’
ipcs.org
12 Jun 09
236
 Agenda for the Next Government
ipcs.org
23 May 09
237
 Rethinking Civilian Control
ipcs.org
17 Apr 09
238
 A Strategy for ‘Af-Pak’
ipcs.org
9 Mar 09
239
Not Quite an Empty Threat
ipcs.org
29 Jan 08
240
The Counter Narrative on Terror
ipcs.org
28 Dec 08
241
National Security Adviser: Reviewing the Institution
ipcs.org
5 Nov 08
242
 A Roadmap for Kashmir
ipcs.org
14 Sep 08
243
Afghanistan: Appraising the Future
ipcs.org
27 Aug 08
244
The Lesson from Sam Bahadur's Triumph
ipcs.org
10 Jul 08
245
The Myth of 'Weapons of Peace'
ipcs.org
10 Jun 08
246
Getting it Right: Rereading India's Nuclear Doctrine
ipcs.org
16 May 08
247
Reconceptualizing Internal Security
ipcs.org
4 Apr 08
248
 Musharraf and the 'TINA' Factor
ipcs.org
8 Mar 08
249
 Understanding Minority-Perpetrated Terrorism
ipcs.org
14 Jan 08
250
 For a Return to Lahore
ipcs.org
23 Dec 07
251
The Day After 'Cold Start'
ipcs.org
23 Nov 07
252
Haldighati II: Implications for Internal Security
ipcs.org
30 Oct 07
253
Tackling Intervention in South Asia
ipcs.org
23 Apr 07
254
 Querying India's Grand Strategy
ipcs.org
26 Mar 07
255
 Kargil: Back in the News
ipcs.org
4 Dec 06
256
 Book Review: In the Line of Fire: Pakistan Army
ipcs.org
21 Nov 06
257
 Pakistan's Possible Nuclear Game Plan
ipcs.org
28 Mar 05
258
 Menu for the New Chief
ipcs.org
22 Dec 04
259
 For a Paradigm Shift
ipcs.org
8 Oct 04
260
Addressing the 'Central' Issue
ipcs.org
16 Sep 04
261
'No' To 'Cold Start'
ipcs.org
1 Sep 04
262
 The Price of Malgovernance
ipcs.org
15 Jan 04
263
 The Price of Misgovernance
ipcs.org
31 Dec 03
264
The Police and the Example of the Armed Forces
ipcs.org
10 Nov 03
265
 Missiles and Crisis Stability
ipcs.org
23 Oct 03
266
Widening the Discourse on Terror
ipcs.org
20 Sep 03
267
The Post-Parakram Peace Agenda
ipcs.org
22 Aug 03
268
 Indian Peacekeeping in Iraq?
ipcs.org
16 Jun 03
269
The ‘Peace Initiative’: A Tactical Gambit
ipcs.org
8 May 03
270
 The Sole ‘Lesson’ of the Iraq War
ipcs.org
1 May 03
271
Muslim India as ‘Threat’
ipcs.org
15 Apr 03
272
For a Return to Clausewitz
ipcs.org
15 Mar 03
273
Preparing for ‘Limited Nuclear War’
ipcs.org
7 Mar 03
274
Gen Musharraf: The General Did Not Bite!
ipcs.org
1 Jan 2003
275
Lessons from India’s Kashmir Engagement
ipcs.org
28 Dec 02
276
The Logic of Nuclear Redlines
ipcs.org
17 Sep 02
277
A Smoke Screen Called Limited War
ipcs.org
15 Aug 02
278
 ‘Terrorism’ and Intellectual Responsibility
ipcs.org

279
The Need to Revisit Conventional Doctrine
ipcs.org
11 Aug 02
280
Moving Beyond Realism
ipcs.org

281
Lessons from the Present Crisis
ipcs.org

282
The Impetus behind Limited War
ipcs.org

283
India’s Coin Policy: ‘Peace Preceding Talks’?
ipcs.org

284
Kashmir: Revectoring Indian Strategy
ipcs.org
5 Aug 02
285
Kashmir: No end in sight
ipcs.org

286
Book Review
The Soldier And The Civilian    
Operation Parakram: The War Unfinished
pcs.org

287
Pakistan Owes Much, But Not Suicide
Countercurrents.org
29 Oct 09
288
Call out the NIA
Countercurrents.org
17 Sep 09
289
Vignettes Of India's Security Culture
Countercurrents.org
4 Aug 09
290
Troubling Aspects Of The Bomb Blasts
Countercurrents.org
16 Sep 09
291
Making Strategic Sense Of Terror
Countercurrents.org
16 August, 2008
292
Controlling The Men In Shadows
Countercurrents.org
3 Mar 09
293
The Minority Perspective On The BJP Manifesto
Countercurrents.org
10 Apr 09