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Environment, Science & Technology

Iran offered India the use of its Chabahar Port to transport humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, Ariana News reported Jan. 10.

India, Iran, Afghanistan: New Aid Route May Help Alleviate Kabul's Crises 

Agriculture

COVID-19

Supply Chains

Security

Iran's Arc of Influence

The India-Pakistan Rivalry

Russia

India and Russia signed a new agreement to manufacture 500,000 AK-203 assault rifles in India and agreed to extend their military-technical cooperation pact for another decade, Mint reported Dec. 6.

India, Russia: Countries Sign New Weapons Manufacturing Agreement

United States

China

The U.S. and the Balance of Power

India received the first shipment of S-400 missiles purchased from Russia in 2018, Nikkei Asia reported Nov. 15.

India, Russia: Moscow Delivers First S-400 Missiles to New Delhi 

Instability in Central Asia

After Pakistan backed out several days ago, the Chinese foreign ministry said representatives will not attend the meeting of national security advisors hosted by India on Nov. 10, The Hindu reported Nov. 9.

India: Pakistan and China Will Not Attend Regional Security Meeting on Afghanistan

A Sept. 25 South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation meeting was canceled after member nations blocked Pakistan's request to allow Afghanistan’s Taliban-led government to participate, the Deccan Herald reported Sept. 22.

South Asia: South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation Meeting Canceled

South Asian Militancy

During a search operation in a district of Jammu and Kashmir, Indian armed forces clashed with Pakistani Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militants, resulting in the death of five LeT members and one Indian soldier, The New Indian Express reported July 2.

India: Army Engages in Deadly Clash With LeT Militants in Kashmir 

Russia has agreed to partake in joint exercises and provide military equipment to Pakistan as part of a new effort to enhance the two countries’ defense ties, Pakistan Today reported April 7. 

Pakistan, Russia: Officials Agree to Boost Defense Ties After Meeting in Islamabad

United Arab Emirates

The India-Pakistan cease-fire announced in February was reportedly the result of an agreement brokered by the United Arab Emirates months prior as part of its larger push to secure lasting peace between the South Asian rivals, beginning with the reinstatement of envoys in both New Delhi and Islamabad, Al Jazeera reported March 22, citing unnamed officials. 

India, Pakistan: UAE Reportedly Helped Broker Kashmir Cease-Fire 

In 1947, British India was partitioned into two independent states: India and Pakistan. Nearly seven decades later, the two countries — now both nuclear powers — are still fierce rivals. As Pakistan works to develop its tactical nuclear weapons, and as India seeks new means of deterring their development, South Asia will be uniquely vulnerable to the threat of military miscalculation. Pakistan’s ongoing struggle to rein in militants, some of whom have turned against the government in Islamabad, will only make matters worse. The ongoing spat over the disputed territory of Kashmir, meanwhile, will prevent New Delhi and Islamabad from normalizing ties. But though the prospect of conflict can never truly be ruled out, the states' mutual need for economic growth will temper their hostilities toward each another, much as it has for the past few years.

Nearly seven decades after gaining independence, India and Pakistan — now both nuclear powers — are still fierce rivals.

China in Transition

India's Own Worst Enemy

Pakistan: A Military With a Country

Snapshots

Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif (R) in Islamabad on April 7, 2022.

Pakistan's new government will face mounting economic challenges and political instability; it will also try to improve ties with the United States and traditional allies.

Pakistan's New Government Will Struggle Amid Economic and Political Challenges

Assessments

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (left) and then-Afghan President Ashraf Ghani wave during the inauguration of the Afghan-India Friendship Dam in Herat, Afghanistan, on June 4, 2016. 

After 20 years of building up economic, political and security ties with the former Afghan government, New Delhi now finds itself back at square one.


For India, a Taliban-Led Afghanistan Marks a Painful Setback

An image depicts waving Chinese and Indian flags overlaying a map of the world.

The two countries' deadly border clash has fueled a surge of anti-China sentiment in India that will prompt Modi to take a more aggressive approach against Beijing. 

In India, Anti-China Anger Will Bring Out Modi's Hawkish Side 

Modernizing China’s Military

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has big plans for Jammu and Kashmir, but they’ll have to wait because of instability.

Until New Delhi restores security in Indian-controlled Kashmir, the investment and migration Modi wants to foster in the region will not substantially materialize.

Kashmir Will Keep India and Pakistan at Risk of Conflict Again in 2020

Columns

On Geopolitics

A Kashmiri woman beats a burning effigy of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a protest in Pakistan on Aug. 25, 2019. 

For Modi and his nationalist ruling party, the political benefits of an Indian Kashmir ultimately outweigh the risks of escalating New Delhi's decadeslong territorial dispute with Pakistan.

How an Indian Kashmir Fits Into Modi's Grand Plan

By allowing people from other parts of India to move to Kashmir, Prime Minister Narendra Modi might be able to alter the region's demographic makeup.

India's prime minister has abrogated Kashmir's autonomy with an eye to putting the state more firmly under India's grasp. That, however, could infuriate Kashmiris and the country's archrival: Pakistan. 

Modi Moves to Remake Kashmir

The Jihadist Wars

The War in Afghanistan

Nevertheless, Islamabad's own strategy means it will be careful not to pressure the Taliban to accede to U.S. wishes to the extent that it alienates the Taliban.

Pakistan, U.S.: Bilateral Ties Improve as Islamabad Helps Washington in Afghanistan

Pompeo's visit represents a U.S. effort to pursue its twin core interests in South Asia of ending the war in Afghanistan and advancing the U.S. partnership with India.

U.S., Afghanistan, India: Pompeo Arrives in South Asia to Pursue Peace and Trade

Construction work takes place on the port of Gwadar in Pakistan in October 2017.

Animated by their opposing visions of economic prosperity and global influence, China and India's competition over Pakistani and Iranian ports, respectively, carry on at all costs.

In the Arabian Sea, Competing Ports in Iran and Pakistan Fuel Ambition and Mistrust

The New Silk Road

Guidance

Pakistan and India are doing their best to put a recent flare-up over Kashmir behind them, but the risk of war remains ever-present.

After the most violent flare-up in Kashmir in years, Islamabad and New Delhi are sounding out possible talks, although the prospect of a wider conflict is never far away.

Pakistan Puts Out Feelers for Dialogue With India

Bangladesh

Bhutan

Maldives

Nepal

Sri Lanka

With China ready to open the purse strings, the days when India could dominate South Asia exclusively are long gone.

New Delhi is eager to maintain its dominance over the smaller states of the subcontinent, but it'll have a hard time competing with Chinese money.

Why the Belt and Road Fuels India's Fears of Encirclement

Indians welcome home a pilot captured by Pakistan in a recent raid over Kashmir.

While the immediate threat of escalation has settled, India's unprecedented airstrike in Pakistan-administered Kashmir has upped the ante for the countries’ next inevitable brawl.

The India-Pakistan Rivalry

SITUATION REPORTS

India, Iran, Afghanistan: New Aid Route May Help Alleviate Kabul's Crises

India, Russia: Countries Sign New Weapons Manufacturing Agreement

India, Russia: Moscow Delivers First S-400 Missiles to New Delhi

India: Pakistan and China Will Not Attend Regional Security Meeting on Afghanistan

South Asia: South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation Meeting Canceled

India: Army Engages in Deadly Clash With LeT Militants in Kashmir

Pakistan, Russia: Officials Agree to Boost Defense Ties After Meeting in Islamabad

India, Pakistan: UAE Reportedly Helped Broker Kashmir Cease-Fire

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