Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs - India

A record number of Indian Americans have been elected to Congress

Ronak D. Desai — Mon, 05 Dec 2016 14:08:12 -0600

December 5, 2016

A record number of Indian Americans were elected to Congress earlier this month, bringing the total number to five in both the House and Senate. ISAP Associate Ronak Desai provides an overview of the Indian presence in Congress and the campaigns that got these indivudals elected.

Bargaining Away Justice: India, Pakistan, and the International Politics of Impunity for the Bangladesh Genocide

Gary Bass — Mon, 14 Nov 2016 16:07:59 -0600

During the 1971 Bangladesh war for independence from Pakistan, the Pakistan army carried out a genocide that killed hundreds of thousands of Bengalis in what was then East Pakistan. The perpetrators never faced trial. Archival documents reveal how India and Bangladesh sacrificed the opportunity for war crimes trials to gain Pakistan’s agreement on key security goals—the Simla peace agreement and recognition of Bangladesh’s independence. The legacy of this decision continues to blight Bangladesh’s politics.

Managing Risk in an Unstable World

Nicholas Burns — Fri, 11 Nov 2016 15:27:57 -0600

November 11, 2016

Dr. Ian Bremmer, expert in political risk and founder of the Eurasia Group, gave a seminar sponsored by the the Future of Diplomacy Project on Thursday, November 9 at the Harvard Kennedy School, titled “Managing Risk in an Unstable World."

Goodbye to the Climate

Robert N. Stavins — Wed, 09 Nov 2016 17:56:19 -0600

"If he lives up to his campaign rhetoric, Mr. Trump may indeed be able to reverse course on climate change policy, increasing the threat to our planet, and in the process destroy much of the Obama legacy in this important realm. This will make the states even more important players on this critical issue."

No, Most Indian-Americans Do Not Support Donald Trump

Ronak D. Desai — Fri, 21 Oct 2016 15:12:56 -0500

October 21, 2016

While the Hindu American Association held a rally for Donald Trump last week, supporters of Trump are a small minority within the Indian-American community. In this article for Forbes, Ronak Desai sets the record straight.

Two Years Later, Modi Remains Hugely Popular In India

Ronak D. Desai — Fri, 23 Sep 2016 11:00:32 -0500

September 23, 2016

India and South Asia Project Affiliate Ronak Desai investigates the reasons for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's consistent popularity after two years in office.

India Aims To Be The World's Newest International Arbitration Hub

Ronak D. Desai — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 11:34:22 -0500

August 9, 2016

India is seeking to become the world’s newest hub international arbitration hub by establishing a new arbitral center in Mumbai. The Mumbai Centre for International Arbitration (MCIA), which begins proceedings this month, will be India’s very first arbitration tribunal. India and South Asia Program Senior Fellow, Ronak Desai looks at what this institution will look like and what's its placement in the region will mean for the international business community.

Foreign Cooperation and Proliferation in South Asia

Jayita Sarkar — Wed, 20 Jul 2016 12:17:40 -0500

"Nuclear South Asia: An Analyst's Guide to India, Pakistan, and the Bomb" is a free, open online course from the Stimson Center that addresses nuclear themes and challenges in South Asia. It is meant to provide strategic analysts in India and Pakistan—and the interested public in all countries—a platform to study these issues and engage in a serious, informed conversation. MTA Associate Jayita Sarkar delivered Section 2's Lecture 3.

What Brexit Means For India

Ronak D. Desai — Wed, 06 Jul 2016 14:05:52 -0500

What does Brexit mean for India? As a former British colony, the country enjoys particularly close economic, trade, political and cultural ties to the United Kingdom. India and South Asia Program Affiliate, Ronak Desai, examines how the relationship could be altered by the British exit from the European Union and possible outcomes.

Nuclear Debates in Asia

Hui Zhang — Fri, 01 Jul 2016 15:48:13 -0500

This important book analyzes nuclear weapon and energy policies in Asia, a region at risk for high-stakes military competition, conflict, and terrorism. The contributors explore the trajectory of debates over nuclear energy, security, and nonproliferation in key countries—China, India, Japan, Pakistan, South Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, and other states in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

China: Evolving Attitudes on Nuclear Affairs

Hui Zhang — Fri, 01 Jul 2016 15:45:38 -0500

Pakistan’s Tactical Nuclear Weapons and Their Impact on Stability

Mansoor Ahmed — Thu, 30 Jun 2016 13:22:05 -0500

The flight-testing of the 60-kilometer (or 37-mile) Hatf-IX, or Nasr, ballistic missile in April 2011 has renewed controversy and debate about strategic stability and nuclear weapons in South Asia. Official statements issued by Pakistan’s Inter Services Public Relations Directorate (ISPR) claim that the Nasr was developed “to add deterrence value to Pakistan’s Strategic Weapons Development programme at shorter ranges.” The Nasr could carry “nuclear warheads of appropriate yield with high accuracy,” and had shoot-and-scoot attributes—essentially a “quick response system” that addressed “the need to deter evolving threats.”

In Non-proliferation We Trust, India Must Wait

Mansoor Ahmed — Tue, 21 Jun 2016 12:57:04 -0500

"In a complete volte-face the nuclear supplier states that created the NSG (then the London Group) in 1975 due to proliferation concerns raised by India's perfidy are contemplating its inclusion. Paradoxically, that sounds like a death knell of the NSG and the non-proliferation regime."

A New Era for Nuclear Security

Martin B. Malin and Nickolas Roth — Thu, 16 Jun 2016 13:31:51 -0500

The 2016 nuclear security summit was a pivotal moment for the decades-long effort to secure nuclear material around the globe. More than 50 national leaders gathered in Washington for the last of four biennial meetings that have led to significant progress in strengthening measures to reduce the risk of nuclear theft.

Why Prime Minister Modi Called On Congress

Ronak D. Desai — Mon, 13 Jun 2016 13:00:59 -0500

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi traveled to Washington last week, making his fourth trip to the United States since taking office just two years ago. India and South Asia Program Fellow, Ronak Desai examines the strategic approach to India's relations with the United States.

Our next president must maintain America’s strong partnership with India

Nicholas Burns — Fri, 03 Jun 2016 08:33:11 -0500

In this June 3 Washington Post op Ed, Professor Burns details the dramatic rise of India as a strategic partner of the United States. During the last two decades, Washington and Delhi have transformed a once deeply suspicious and often contentious relationship into one with expanding ties in counter terrorism, homeland security, science and technology, defense, clean energy and other areas. Burns stresses that our next president should continue this bipartisan push to make India one of our most important friends in an increasingly fragile Asian security environment.

The real significance of Prime Minister Modi's address to Congress

Ronak D. Desai — Thu, 12 May 2016 14:00:05 -0500

May 12, 2016

Speaker of the House Paul Ryan announced earlier this month that he has invited Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to address a joint session of Congress on June 8. This will be the Indian leader’s fourth trip to the United States in two years. Although the invitation is a potent reminder of the robust ties between the Washington and New Delhi, its real significance lies elsewhere: it is the final step in Prime Minister Modi’s political rehabilitation in the United States.

SOUTH ASIA WEEK: "India's Increasing Role in Multilateral Relations and Its Global Interests"

Mon, 09 May 2016 22:16:40 -0500

May 9, 2016

On April 28, Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations, Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin, examined India’s evolving role in multilateral institutions in a public speech that concluded the Future of Diplomacy Project’s annual 2016 South Asia Week titled “India’s Increasing Role in Multilateral Relations and its Global Interests.” Executive Director of the Future of Diplomacy Project and the India and South Asia Program, Cathryn Clüver, moderated the event at the Center for Government and International Studies.

Photo Gallery: 2016 South Asia Week

Mon, 09 May 2016 20:53:50 -0500

May 9, 2016

From April 25 to April 29, The Future of Diplomacy Project and India and South Asia Project hosted the annual South Asia Week with influential practitioners of diplomacy from Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, and the U.S. invited to discuss prevailing issues affecting the region.

Battling over Pakistan’s Battlefield Nuclear Weapons

Christopher Clary, Gaurav Kampani and Jaganath Sankaran — Tue, 03 May 2016 16:51:39 -0500

Christopher Clary and Gaurav Kampani respond to Jaganath Sankaran's winter 2015/16 article, "Pakistan's Battlefield Nuclear Policy: A Risky Solution to an Exaggerated Threat."

Pakistan, MIRVs, and Counterforce Targeting

Mansoor Ahmed and Faroz H. Khan — Sat, 30 Apr 2016 12:40:47 -0500

"Strategic competition between Pakistan and India is intensifying. Both countries have now entered into a phase of modernization and expansion of their respective strategic forces, reflecting significant investments in strategic programs. Their fissile material production capacities have grown substantially and they have inducted a plethora of new delivery systems. Both are in the process of fielding nuclear triads. Technological advancements are underway in: modern combat aircraft and air defense capabilities; cruise and ballistic missiles; sea-based deterrents; tactical nuclear weapons (TNWs); ballistic missile defense (BMD); and multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles (MIRVs). India and Pakistan now possess more new types of nuclear weapon delivery vehicles than the United States..."

Conversations in Diplomacy: Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin

Thu, 28 Apr 2016 14:46:28 -0500

April 28, 2016

In this installment of “Conversations in Diplomacy," the Future of Diplomacy Project's Executive Director, Cathryn Clüver, speaks with Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin,India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations.

The Three Overlapping Streams of India's Nuclear Power Programs

Kalman A. Robertson and John Carlson — Fri, 15 Apr 2016 10:06:15 -0500

As India’s civilian nuclear energy program expands with the assistance of international nuclear suppliers, it creates new potential pathways to the acquisition of fissile material that could be diverted for military purposes. A key question is whether and how India’s civilian and military nuclear facilities are separated. In this discussion paper from the Belfer Center’s Project on Managing the Atom, Kalman A. Robertson and John Carlson argue that India has not established a complete and verifiable separation of its civilian and military nuclear programs. The authors recommend steps for India to take under its safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency to provide assurances to all states that components of its civilian program are not contributing to the growth of its nuclear arsenal. These steps include renouncing options that would facilitate the use of safeguarded items to produce unsafeguarded nuclear material, and placing the proliferation-sensitive components of its nuclear power industry under continuous safeguards.

Bollywood's Affair with the Indian Mafia

Ronak D. Desai — Thu, 03 Mar 2016 19:46:21 -0600

The link between Bollywood and Indian organized crime is as old as India itself, writes author Ronak Desai. The film industry’s intimate relationship with the Indian underworld is considered one of the country’s worst kept secrets whose origins can be traced to a government regulation that rendered the cinema industry ineligible for legitimate forms of financing.

India Remains One of the Most Corrupt Countries in the World

Ronak D. Desai — Mon, 08 Feb 2016 12:00:17 -0600

Ronak Desai examines how India remains one of the most corrupt countries in the world, according to a recent report by prominent watchdog group, Transparency International.

What Lifting Iran Sanctions Means For India

Ronak D. Desai — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 14:35:19 -0600

The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog has certified Tehran’s compliance with the terms of a nuclear accord the United States, Iran and other world powers reached in April 2015. The historic agreement is aimed at curtailing Iran’s controversial nuclear program, and paves the way for longstanding sanctions against Tehran to be lifted. Sanctions targeting Iran, and particularly its lucrative energy sector, have crippled the country economically and isolated it diplomatically.

Ronak Desai examines what the lifting of Iran sanctions mean for India.

What’s at Stake in Paris - Diplomacy & Policy at the Climate Change Talks

Sun, 22 Nov 2015 09:39:20 -0600

November 22, 2015

Opening the joint CLIMATE CHANGE DIPLOMACY WEEK event series, speakers and leading climate change experts from both Harvard and beyond participated in a panel discussion titled "What's at Stake in Paris?: Diplomacy and Policy at the Climate Change Talks," moderated by the Future of Diplomacy Project Faculty Director, R. Nicholas Burns, and co-hosted with the Harvard Project on Climate Agreements on November 9. The speakers comprised of Sturgis Hooper Professor of Geology at Harvard University, Daniel Schrag; former Costa Rican Minister of Environment and Energy, René Castro; former Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs and chief climate negotiator, Paula Dobriansky; and Albert Pratt Professor of Business and Government and Director of the Harvard Project on Climate Agreements, Robert Stavins. Together panellists weighed in on the upcoming UNFCCC talks to be held in Paris in December and the overarching policy issues at play.

Roundtable on Bargaining on Nuclear Tests: Washington And Its Cold War Rivals by Or Rabinowitz

Francis Gavin, Gaurav Kampani, Jayita Sarkar and Or Rabinowitz — Mon, 16 Nov 2015 18:53:35 -0600

"In Bargaining on Nuclear Tests the historian Or Rabinowitz demonstrates the rare ability to engage with contemporary policy debates on nuclear proliferation and U.S. nonproliferation strategies on the one hand, and successfully utilize qualitative analytical frameworks in social science like prospect theory (19) on the other."

How the U.S. Should Respond to the Rise of India

Charles R. Kaye, Joseph S. Nye and Alyssa Ayres — Thu, 12 Nov 2015 08:58:42 -0600

"...India has a window of opportunity for significant change. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has prioritized job creation and economic growth without the baggage of welfare promises typically offered up in Indian politics. During his first 18 months in office, he has sought to revitalize Indian foreign policy, and signaled a desire for a stronger relationship with the United States."

Oil & State Capitalism: Government-Firm Coopetition in China and India

Jonas Meckling — Wed, 04 Nov 2015 16:14:52 -0600

This paper examines the domestic sources of the internationalization of national oil companies (NOCs) in China and India. It argues that—counter to notions of state-led internationalization—the going abroad of NOCs reflects a pattern of “coopetition,” i.e., the co-existence of cooperation and conflict between increasingly entrepreneurial NOCs and partially supportive and interventionist home governments.