Columnists

C. Raja Mohan

C. Raja Mohan is Director, Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore, and contributing editor on foreign affairs for 'The Indian Express'.

As it ponders talks with Taliban, Delhi should focus on complex geopolitics of the Pashtun lands

Tue, May 26, 2020

Those calling for direct engagement with the Taliban say that Delhi can't ignore such an important force in Afghan politics. Opponents say there is no reason for Delhi to join the international stampede to embrace the Taliban.

Unanimous approval of resolution seeking probe into Covid-19 origin and role of WHO will be a setback for Beijing

Tue, May 19, 2020

Whatever the fate of the resolution, the wide-ranging support it has got amidst the vocal Chinese opposition is impressive.

All major economies will be drawn into US-China contestations over international trade

Tue, May 12, 2020

Significant political contestations within the US and between the US and China to reform, reorient or bypass the WTO system are at hand. All major economies will be drawn into this conflict.

South Block is turning the Covid crisis into an opportunity to conduct diplomatic engagement online

Tue, May 05, 2020

The Foreign Office is merely following other professions that are adapting to restrictions on travel across borders and within them by the corona crisis.

Coronavirus crisis delivers yet another blow to political fortunes of Pakistan PM Imran Khan

Tue, Apr 28, 2020

Imran Khan's indecisive leadership in handling the corona crisis may have tipped the scales for Pakistan’s deep state that has always treated the civilian leaders with disdain.

The reversal of the great right-ward drift since the 1980s has begun

Tue, Apr 21, 2020

The corona crisis threatens to write the obituary of global capitalism. It will have a lasting impact on national economic strategies and politics.

China has replaced Russia as ‘the foreign hand’ in American politics

Tue, Apr 14, 2020

As the virus and China move to the top of the US domestic agenda, their impact on Washington’s relations with Beijing is bound to be significant. And unlike Russia, China is far more central to the US economy and a powerful political challenger to America’s global leadership.

With global institutions in turmoil, India needs to be pragmatic and fleet-footed

Sat, Apr 11, 2020

India needs all the pragmatism it can muster to pursue its interests in a world where all the major global institutions — from the WHO to the WTO — are experiencing unprecedented turmoil and are heading towards an inevitable restructuring.

Sovereignty is back. Solidarity is under stress, will need to be reinvented

Tue, Apr 07, 2020

Although all world leaders have acknowledged the global imperative in dealing with the virus, they have put the nation first. Are all nations now for themselves? Not so fast.

Winning the legal argument, China has learnt from history of great power relations

Tue, Mar 31, 2020

The case for China’s culpability is based on the principles of state responsibility and Beijing’s alleged failure to respect the obligation, under the 2005 International Health Regulations, to notify the world on the outbreak of the epidemic.

COVID-19 has sharpened US-China conflict. WHO is caught in the crossfire

Tue, Mar 24, 2020

China has carefully calibrated its rise in UN system. World, including India, must deal with consequences.

Delhi needs a stronger private sector in science in dealing with challenges like corona crisis

Fri, Mar 20, 2020

Coronavirus crisis is an opportunity for Delhi to build on domestic technological capabilities in artificial intelligence, big data analytics, life sciences and health technology in the private sector.

Coronavirus crisis could have lasting impact on global political economy, trigger new equations among nations

Tue, Mar 17, 2020

This crisis could have a lasting impact on the global political economy, trigger new equations among nations

Coronavirus outbreak highlights China’s dominance over pharmaceutical industry

Tue, Mar 10, 2020

Although the slowdown in Chinese manufacturing has disrupted the supply chains of many goods, the impact on the drug industry has helped highlight the national security implications of China’s dominance over the pharmaceutical industry.

India needs urgent and radical reforms in its space sector

Tue, Mar 03, 2020

As it looks at the growing role of the private sector and the effort by nations like the UAE and Luxembourg, Delhi needs to move quickly towards a new model for India’s space activity.

Explained: Reading Donald Trump’s visit to India

Fri, Feb 28, 2020

PM Narendra Modi has broken through systemic prejudice against US engagement. But an India at war with itself can’t take advantage of the possibilities presented by the ‘Hindi-Amreeki, Bhai-Bhai’ phase in the relationship.

Delhi must deal with Trump’s determination to recast the global trading system

Tue, Feb 25, 2020

The threat to the sovereignty of India and China does not come from occasional statements by the White House, resolutions in the US Congress or stinging editorials from the New York Times. The real threat to their sovereignty comes from policies that deepen internal conflicts.

India-US security cooperation in eastern Indian Ocean and Pacific must be extended to western frontiers

Sun, Feb 23, 2020

Delhi has already stepped up its naval activity within the Gulf and beyond as part of its emergence as a regional security provider. It knows that its effectiveness will rise manifold if it acts in concert with the US and other partners. Modi and Trump could begin by laying the political foundation for such cooperation.

Trump has made India’s trade headache more acute. But he has also opened up opportunities

Thu, Feb 20, 2020

Trade has long been a contentious issue between New Delhi and Washington. Donald Trump administration has made the problem more acute, but India too is turning to protectionism.

Trump is reducing US intervention around the world. Delhi needs to come to terms with these profound changes

Tue, Feb 18, 2020

Delhi needs to unlearn some of the assumptions about US policy as it prepares to host Trump next week. While the diaspora is important and could be of some value in dealing with Trump, it can’t override the deeper forces animating American politics.