DEFENCE

The maxim of the Israeli army to avoid casualties at any cost. To save one soldier, it is permissible to kill ten, twenty, a hundred civilians on the other side. Hannibal allows – indeed, commands – wreaking of untold destruction and killing, in order to prevent a captured soldier from being spirited away. This itself is war crime.

Afghanistan is at a crossroads after the US announced plans to withdraw all troops by 11 Sep 2021 -- bringing America's longest war to an end

It’s time to review our ‘one size fits all’ strategy. The need of the hour is to have a mix of medium and light tanks to effectively meet the emerging threats and fight the next war differently.

From Cariappa to Naravane - list of Indian officers who led the Indian Army as the Chiefs of the Army Staff

The PM has been echoing the call for self-reliance on numerous occasions, post-onset of COVID 19. The recent standoff at the LAC has once again made security strategists revisit the issue of the location of supply chains in a country where openness and transparency are not consistent with what prevails in the democratic world.

The dragon is a mythological powerful and benevolent symbol of the Chinese culture. Chinese dragon traditionally symbolizes potent and auspicious powers. Interestingly, dragons are also found in Indian mythology where Indra battled the dragon for 360 days and ultimately killed him. It was a typical “Good Prevails over Evil’, fable. It remains to be seen if and how far the traditional Indian folk-lore of taming the Dragon is relevant today?

As Sun Tzu says in the Art of War - “He who wishes to fight must first count the cost” China mustn't underestimate India - politically, diplomatically, economically, or militarily. India is number four in the world just after China in the GFP (Global Firepower Index) 2020. GFP ranking is based on each nation's potential war-making capability across the land, sea, and air fought by conventional means.

It must be clear that China needs India more than India needs China, particularly in the next decade or so. India’s youthful population and growth, indicate the accumulation of the world’s largest middle class and its economic trajectory. The challenge lies in managing China both in peace and war, which requires collaborative military, economic, informational, diplomatic, and political levers.

It is high time to call the bluff off and communicate to Dragon in the only language that he understands. The real challenge lies in crafting face-saving exit for PLA, yet sticking to our red lines of restoration of status quo. PM has set the ball rolling.

Railways, defense installations, and port trusts are the largest landowners in India. The defense land includes airbases, firing ranges, dockyards and other military establishments. A large chunk of this land – about nine times the size of Delhi – could be monetized or used for housing and other infrastructure projects.

An unusual combination took shape on Jan 1, 2020 when Gen Manoj Mukund Naravane took over as the 28th Chief of the Army Staff while his batch-mates Admiral Karambir Singh and Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria are heading the Navy and Air Force.

The whole Nation salutes the valour and sacrifices of Bravehearts who did the Impossible at Kargil