Violent clashes in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK)

PoK Polls Expose A Deeper Faultline: Widening Gap Between Official Narratives and Ground Realities

Any further instability in the region carries security implications for both countries. Escalating unrest along an already sensitive frontier can heighten tensions and reduce the already limited space for dialogue between New Delhi and Islamabad.

Asymmetric Warfare via Migration: What India Can Learn from Spain’s Ceuta Crisis

Rightly, India is now treating mass irregular Rohingya migration as an engineered, hybrid national security threat that requires a coordinated border guarding, diplomatic, and legal response.

India's Pakistan Policy Needs Communication, Not Talks

Ultimately, sustainable peace between India and Pakistan cannot be built merely through meetings or declarations. It requires a fundamental transformation in Pakistan's approach towards terrorism, regional stability and bilateral relations. Until that happens, comprehensive dialogue is unlikely to produce meaningful outcomes. 

China’s Criminal Footprint in Sri Lanka has Regional Security Implications

When a Chinese company won the contract to establish hybrid wind and solar energy projects on three islands off the northern Jaffna peninsula—just 45 km from Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu—the security implications extended far beyond economics. Against this backdrop, India’s concerns are entirely justifiable. Sri Lanka faces a pressing question: how will the nation confront the infiltration of Chinese global criminal networks? Since Mahinda Rajapaksa’s tenure, Chinese presence in Colombo has steadily increased, with Sri Lanka positioned as a partner state in Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative.

More on Geopolitics, Security and Strategic Affairs

The Russia-Ukraine war is unlikely to diminish Afghanistan's importance

The US and its allies will never lose sight of Afghanistan's strategic importance in a vital region, writes Saed Mansoor Sadat for South Asia Monitor 

Crime and punishment: Is the Indian justice system impartial?

Criminal justice has its own logic at present and its discrepancies are not matching with the democratic ethos of India's secular constitution, writes Ram Puniyani for South Asia Monitor 

Pakistan’s 'Aurat March': Breaking biases against women

Aurat March in Pakistan has proved to be a phenomenal success, forcing society to acknowledge women’s efforts, writes Nadra Huma Quraishi for South Asia Monitor

Danger of rapid escalation of Ukraine war: India must speak out

The ‘unforeseen’ would become a frightening reality, recalling what the victims of Hiroshima and Nagasaki had whispered piteously: "The living will envy the dead", writes Cmde C. Uday Bhaskar (retd) for South Asia Monitor

Bangladesh needs to strike a fine diplomatic balance between major powers

Bangladesh can neither ignore the US and India nor China in the light of the changing global geopolitical situation, writes Emilia Fernandez for South Asia Monitor

Ukraine crisis exposes global realities: Lessons for India

For India, an aggressive Russia does not cause concern; many here believe it to be a more reliable and effective check on China than the United States, writes Amb Dilip Sinha (retd) for South Asia Monitor

Minority persecution in Bangladesh: A distorted reality

Bangladesh is being depicted unfairly - and without evidence - as a country that discriminates against its minorities, particularly Hindus, writes Anup Sinha for South Asia Monitor

With timely decision making, Bangladesh can claim success in managing COVID-19 effects

Bangladesh settled for a humanistic approach, focusing on people and their wellbeing, taking steps to minimize infection and death rates, besides ensuring the availability of food, writes Dr. Mohammad Rezaul Karim for the South Asia Monitor

The fading joys of Basant in Pakistan

With the ban on kite flying in force, Basant, a celebration of nature and culture, may soon become a matter of the past in Pakistan, writes Mahendra Ved for South Asia Monitor

Indian hijab row: Muslims should not get trapped in communal snares

With the help of pliant media, saffron powers have discredited Muslims as an obstacle to the country's development and an enemy of equality, secularism and women's rights, writes Sohail Ahmad for South Asia Monitor

Case of Goa’s liberation: Is it right to keep blaming Nehru?

There was also a proposal for a plebiscite in Goa; Nehru stood the ground that Goa’s merger with India is non-negotiable, writes Ram Puniyani for South Asia Monitor 

Working for an 'Oasis of Peace' between India and Pakistan

The upcoming meeting of Indian and Pakistani Rotary Club members and others at Kartarpur this week highlights Rotarian efforts to develop an Indus Peace Park near the Kartarpur entrance writes Beena Sarwar for South Asia Monitor 

Media and Islamophobia: Need for reconciliation and understanding

International communities should criminalize the intentional propagation of hatred towards a particular faith, write Monira Nazmi Jahan and Nusrat Jahan Nishat for South Asia Monitor

India’s closer engagement with UAE is a win-win situation for both

The CEPA’s larger significance is that it serves as a template for an FTA with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) whose members include Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Bahrain, writes N. Chandra Mohan for South Asia Monitor

ICJ should not give legitimacy to the Myanmarese junta in Rohingya genocide case

The junta will likely leverage the hearings to gain substantial de jure recognition as the legitimate government of Myanmar within other UN bodies and beyond, writes Parvej Siddique Bhuiyan for South Asia Monitor