Int’l Affairs

Operation Peace Spring Turkey’s military offence in northern Syria Aftab H. Wahla West-instigated ‘democratization’ of the Middle East, i.e. the Arab Spring, continues to devastate the region with endless, brutal civil wars, foreign interventions, unstable and fragile democratic regimes, instrumentalization of proxy wars, expansionist policies of regional countries, intensification of sectarian and nationalist propensities, mass displacement-led refugee crisis, the emergence …

Israel-Palestine Conflict and IR Theories Is peace between Israelis and Palestinians possible? Peace is sought out and desired by leaders of nations as an alternative to war and conflict. However, defining what peace entails is often challenging. It is easier to recognize what peace is not rather than what it ought to be. For the purposes of this article, this …

Babri Mosque Verdict India’s age of Hindu majoritarianism seems to be in the offing  Few events in the history of modern India have been as polarising as the 1992 destruction of the Babri Masjid in the Hindu holy city of Ayodhya. In an episode of unabashed ugliness, a frenzied mob of thousands of Hindu extremists — including some of the …

Afghanistan after 18 Years of US Occupation Flawed strategies, ambiguous policies and the way forward Mairaj ul Hamid Nasri The United States has completed its 18 years in Afghanistan. On 07th of October 2001, it attacked this country by launching ‘Operation Enduring Freedom’ here under the umbrella of NATO and backed by UN resolution 1368 with an apparent aim to …

Three Axes of the Future War There is a different vision of the future of war. While previously wars were growing increasingly massive in scale, today they are increasingly remote-controlled affairs as new technologies are influencing the nature of modern conflicts and worsening the international security environment. Information and cyber technologies make this vector practicable. Noteworthy in this sense is …

The conflicts of Kashmir and Hong Kong A reminiscent of British imperialism Abdul Rasool Syed Presently, the world is witnessing two major conflicts in Asia; one is of Kashmir and the other Hong Kong. Both these conflicts have their roots back in the long-gone British Empire. The grubby legacy of British imperialism is still alive and kicking in these regions. …

The East’s Rise and the New Russian Foreign Policy Magazine Desk In recent years, the turn to the East, or pivot to Asia, has been one of the most popular topics in the Russian political and media discourse. Assessments of this process vary: some consider it a long-overdue necessity and a chance for Russia to increase its competitiveness in the …

Indian Ocean and Global Diplomacy Osama Rizvi Whether you are an aspiring civil servant or a policymaker in government, geopolitics never ceases to retain its charming relevance. Despite the recent communications revolution and of globalization as it turned the world into a “global village” blurring borders, both have not made any difference to the centuries-old idea from the realm of …

Growing Russia-China Bonhomie A new alliance in the making? Russia’s policy towards China has been one of adaptation and accommodation. Despite increasing asymmetry in power between the two states, Moscow and Beijing have reinforced cooperation and managed to overcome a number of challenges. These included Russia’s policy towards Ukraine, Moscow and Beijing’s competing regional projects in Eurasia and China’s growing …

China’s Belt and Road Initiative Debt Trap or Soft Power Catalyst? Shafqat Javed China is a powerful international actor as the world’s most populous country and its second-largest economy. The country also invests significantly in modernizing its military. With signs that the United States will retreat from a leadership role under the Trump administration, China has positioned itself as a …