USIBC members and Atul Keshap🇺🇸 were honored to host Dr. S. Jaishankar and Taranjit Singh Sandhu for a discussion on strengthening the U.S.-India Defense Partnership, including business tie-ups on AI, manufacturing, and research.

The Hamas' terror attack against #Israel could potentially drag the developing narrative of a 'new' Middle East back to the 'old' one. My analysis for ORF on impact of this tectonic crisis on regional and international security order: orfonline.org/expert-speak/h…

With the Israel-Hamas war in play and questions on the future of new regional diplomacy and economic formats such as I2U2 and IMEEC, my piece for Foreign Policy on how India has reshaped its #MiddleEast policy and what it may look like in time to come. foreignpolicy.com/2023/11/17/ind…

My piece in The Hindu today on spillover of war in Gaza into the #RedSea that connects East-West via Suez, influence of Yemen-based Houthi militia on effectively installing a maritime blockade and its impact on geoeconomics including for India. thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/…

My piece in The Hindustan Times (Hindustan Times) today on the current complexities of working the Tehran diplomacy channel for India and centrality of the Red Sea crisis behind foreign minister S Jaishankar's recent visit to #Iran. hindustantimes.com/opinion/workin…

Return of the Taliban in #Afghanistan upends regional security view. One major relationship is with #Gulf states, specially in light of the kind of support mujahideen got from #MiddleEast in the 90s. My new paper for ORF looks into this dynamic... orfonline.org/research/middl…

In The Hindu today, I examine #China's diplomatic posture around the war in #Gaza and why, as it celebrates one year of mediating a deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran, Beijing is reluctant to try and do the same in the current scenario. thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/…

Terror attack claimed by Islamic State in #Russia highlights deep divisions in global counter terror narratives as a new era of big power competition settles in. My piece for Foreign Policy on why terror groups are well places to exploit these realities. foreignpolicy.com/2024/04/02/mos…

🚨 New piece in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists) on India's MIRV test & Sino-Indian nuclear stability🚨 "...The MIRV test and the solidifying of strategic stability will open up space for China-India conventional crisis escalation" thebulletin.org/2024/04/how-in…

My quick analysis for ORF on assassination of #Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in #Iran. While still early, I argue that while Tehran will respond, if the region was not set ablaze for Soleimani, its doubtful they will do so for Haniyeh. orfonline.org/expert-speak/i…

If #Israel’s aim of eliminating Haniyeh in #Iran was to goad a public and clear response from Tehran, it has found itself in same bracket as Hezbollah, with Nasrallah doing same on behalf of Tehran, making strategic ambiguity difficult. My latest for NDTV ndtv.com/opinion/why-th…

Diffidence to Strength — a look back at the IAF’s first multinational exercise, in the painful aftermath of 1962, contrasted with #TarangShakti, larger, more complex, and hosted by a far more capable & confident Indian Air Force. Joint piece with Anchit Gupta iafhistory.in/2024/08/03/dif…

🚨 New piece out in the ISR! I discuss the different barriers that junior international scholars face to participate in knowledge production. This includes epistemological biases and barriers, citizenship/visa issues, & financial obstacles. academic.oup.com/isr/article-ab…

"The domestic and geopolitical circumstances for urgent reform and growth are strong, rare and fleeting." Gopal Nadadur & I write on reforms to India's extant defence acquisition procedures in today's Economic Times! economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/et-com…

A flurry of reports that Taliban-appointed nominees may take charge of some of #Afghanistan's diplomatic posts in India could be a turning point. My piece in Hindustan Times today explaining why Delhi is looking to engage the Taliban in such a way. hindustantimes.com/opinion/politi…

I did a quick and dirty analysis of the new J/JH-XX (now known as J/JH-36) for ORF. Bottom line, this is closer to 5G than 6G, and could be a high-and-fast A2A beast or the first medium bomber of the stealth era (think modern F-111, or FB-22). orfonline.org/expert-speak/c…

In the Middle East, there are two main kinetic strategies, Israel's 'intelligence first' vs Iran's 'forward defence'. My piece on why these blueprints of war are anchored in conventional methods and not high-tech in an era of AI and automation. ORF orfonline.org/expert-speak/m…

As we come up on a decade since PMO India Narendra Modi coined the term ‘SAGAR' at the Mauritius National Day 2015 (he is headed back there again this week), I thought back to this paragraph in a book by Wg Cdr Vikas Kalyani, calling for enhanced vision by India for the IOR.

In my piece in today’s Economic Times, I write about the evolving role of drones in the India-Pakistan conflict. They won't determine who prevails in a conflict. But they will certainly play a prominent role complementing existing weapon systems! economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/et-com…

🚨 My article on Nuclear Delivery Vehicles is out at Security Studies! (Open Access) It explains: - Why does the Non-Proliferation Regime & NPT allow nuclear delivery vehicles to spread? - How did India acquire its nuclear delivery technology? Read here: tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.10…