A Russian Viewpoint The European Union and United States have been targeting Russia with economic sanctions. On 17 March 2014, the EU imposed the first travel bans and asset freezes against Russian and Ukrainian officials following Russia’s annexation of Crimea as there was “absence of de-escalatory steps by the Russian Federation”. Here is a write-up which elucidates the Russian viewpoint …

South Asia hosts eight Saarc states namely Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Maldives and Afghanistan. The region comprises most ancient cultures in the world, housing over a fifth of population. South Asia holds a significant strategic importance because of its geography (warm water access and numerous resources) and strategic location. The region became more significant after India and …

The basic feature of US foreign policy during the Cold War was inclusiveness — a willingness to embrace any country that opposed communism, whatever its type of government. The US contested the Soviet system and held the line militarily, and its consistent and comprehensive approach eventually led to the Soviet Union’s implosion. After the Cold War, came the “war on …

President Obama surprised many recently when he diagnosed the crisis gripping Iraq as partly an economic one, noting that Iraqi Sunnis were “detached from the global economy” and thus frustrated in achieving their aspirations. While Iraq’s chaos has many sources, Mr Obama is nevertheless on to something; and it’s not just Iraqi Sunnis, but the entire Middle East that is …

China’s party leadership just announced the country’s reform agenda that will guide government policymaking and implementation for the next decade. Like previous such plenum documents, the announcements outline only broad priorities. If Beijing is serious in implementing the third plenum document’s central message on the decisive role of markets, then this may well prove to be a pivotal moment in …

Since Russia’s annexation of Crimea in March the EU and the US have ratcheted up sanctions several times, tightening restrictions on major Russian state banks and corporations. They have blacklisted dozens of senior Russian officials, separatist commanders and Russian firms accused of undermining Ukrainian sovereignty. The EU sanctions announced on 12th September targeted Russia’s state finances, energy and arms sectors. …

The Indian and Pakistani foreign secretaries were supposed to meet to ’talk about talks.’ India cancelled the dialogue at the eleventh hours as ‘punishment’ after Pakistan’s high commissioner in Delhi met with Kashmiri political groups. In the aftermath, there has been a dramatic escalation of shelling along the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir. This latest failure by both states …

Crafting a more effective foreign policy constitutes a challenge in a political environment in which non-state actors and their sympathisers have come to occupy a position of strength. Common sense suggests that Pakistan should have friendly relations with all neighbours and with global powers that hold sway. Such a level-headed foreign policy requires realism and has little room for knee-jerk …

Geopolitics, the study of the interaction between geography, international politics, and international relations, has seemingly passed its heyday and critiques are now coming from several fronts. Geography in this regard includes both features that are ‘fixed’, such as location, topography, strategic chokepoints, climate, and natural resources, as well as elements of human and political geography, such as a country’s size, …

They can’t help themselves. Whatever the situation, the reaction of US policymakers is more war. Weak economy? War will get things going. Strong economy? Military spending will cool it off. Two wars (Afghanistan and Iraq) finally winding down? Time to ramp up secret arms sales to a pair of pipsqueak insurgencies (Libya and Syria). Other superpowers love militarism. But only …