August 31, 2018
Repression in Rakhine, and the principle of the 'responsibility to protect'
In my previous avatar as a diplomat, like much of the rest of the world, I saw myself as an ardent advocate for change in Myanmar. It was in the grip of Generals who ran a horrendously repressive regime.
August 13, 2018
Balancing Bangladesh's foreign policy
The relationship between a smaller and a larger neighbourly state, as also between a weaker and stronger one, is often tricky on both sides.
August 1, 2018
Imran Khan's biggest challenge? 'It's the economy, stupid!'
Shakespeare had once observed, through his character Marcellus addressing Horatio in the drama Hamlet, that there was something rotten in the State of Denmark.
July 28, 2018
The New World Disorder: We must learn to live with it
A fundamental law of physics, also applicable to the social sciences, is that everything in nature is in a state of flux. The sage Heraclitus had said we never step into the same river twice.
July 22, 2018
Prognosis of polls in Pakistan
As one heads towards the elections in Pakistan on July 25, the main question in concerned minds is whether Imran Khan, the leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), is going to be Pakistan's next prime minister.
July 10, 2018
The handling of Donald Trump
A seventeenth-century English satirist, Tom Brown, penned a doggerel about the Dean of Christ Church, one of the most prominent colleges, then as now, at Oxford. It went: I do not like thee, Dr Fell
June 15, 2018
The new sun that reddens the East
In China, in the 1950s and '60s, the most popular song was entitled, "Dongfang Hong," or "The East is Red". Unmistakably, and understandably, it eulogised the Great Helmsman of the Peoples' Republic, Mao Zedong. The lyrics, an unabashed paean of fulsome praise to the undisputed leader, ran thus: "Dongfang Hong, from China comes Mao Zedong … Hurrah he is the Great Saviour, Lead us forward,…Hurrah he is our guide!" Much has changed in
June 8, 2018
Trump-Kim meeting: The lure of the Lion City
The on-again, off-again summit between the leaders of the United States and North Korea are due to be held shortly in Singapore, an ideal setting for many reasons. While it is likely to de-escalate tensions, prudence would dictate limited expectations.
May 28, 2018
Politics of polls beyond the Vindhyas
In terms of heights and magnitude the Vindhyas do not match the Himalayas. Yet both these mountain ranges find mention in the Indian national anthem. This denotes their importance. That of the Himalayas is obvious.
May 20, 2018
Of crises and kite-flying
With only weeks to go before the planned Summit between the two in Singapore on June 12, both US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un seemed to be focused on a spot of kite-flying, on the backdrop of crises, to test each other's nerves.