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Tackling Boko Haram

Even though Nigeria is an extremely resilient nation, having survived successive military coups, a civil war, religious extremism and ethnic crisis, its fight to eradicate the ongoing insurgency led by the militant Islamist group Boko Haram is creating an unprecedented challenge for the country. Established in 2002, Boko Haram, considered an ultra conservative militant Islamist outfit, is fighting to overthrow the Nigerian government and create an Islamic State, in a bid to dis-associate the state… Read More »Tackling Boko Haram

Al-Qaeda in Yemen

A recently captured document written by Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) reveals an unusual degree of self-reflection regarding the terrorist group’s short-lived control over parts of southern Yemen. Having retreated to historic safe havens in the interior following last year’s Yemeni military campaign, AQAP has returned to its insurgent roots as it reconstitutes its forces. As part of this regenerative process, it has undertaken a thorough review of its 2011-2012 occupation and administration in… Read More »Al-Qaeda in Yemen

South Sudan crisis

Amid sharp confusion in South Sudan as ethnic fighting escalated and the army warned of a mobilizing fighting force called the ‘White Army’ that is allied with one of the main protagonists in the week long old conflict, the situation is fast escalating into a war despite best efforts to stop hostility. As fighting continues across South Sudan, the United Nations is reporting that some 1,000 people may have been killed, while aid agencies estimate… Read More »South Sudan crisis

Lurking danger

Expanding terrorism in East Africa and the Horn of Africa There are various kinds of terrorism in East Africa (Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania) and the Horn (Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, and Somalia). If timely steps are not taken it will be a disaster for the whole continent even impacting West Asian region. The Horn of Africa has been the most conflicted part of Africa during the last 50 years. Although there have been long-standing disputes… Read More »Lurking danger

Increasing Piracy Activities

South East Asia is fast becoming a potential threat to the world commerce due to rising incidents of sea piracy. In past few years the region has witnessed an increase in the pirate attacks near Strait of Malacca and South China Sea. This is becoming a significant problem and it seems to be escalating as the value of the oil stolen in 2015 alone in the area stands at $5 million. There have been 124… Read More »Increasing Piracy Activities

Anti-Submarine Operations

Anti-submarine warfare is a multi-dimensional asset deployment in the water, on the surface and in the air to look for, track, identify and finally destroy an enemy submarine. With so much ocean space to patrol (Arabian Sea 3,86,200 sq km; Bay of Bengal 2,17,200 sq km, Indian Ocean 70,560,000 sq km), visiting just the littoral waters and the chokepoints in the west and south-east Asia requires massive human effort and a plethora of technical tools.… Read More »Anti-Submarine Operations

State of coastal security

The effectiveness of the coastal radar network and security of peninsular India was demonstrated at its worst during the recent crash of the Coast Guard Dornier aircraft. It took 33 days and nearly a dozen institutions that have anything to do with the sea to cooperate and find the wreckage of the Dornier, some human remains and a watch that could finally confirm the death of its owner. Neither the radar at Thiruchirapally (Trichy) about… Read More »State of coastal security

Role of OPVs

Indian Navy has been bestowed with the huge responsibility of keeping a round the clock watch on the Indian Ocean spanning from the African Coast to Australia and up to the Malacca Strait with limited resources. Though the Indian Navy started inducting the Offshore Patrol Vessels from the late eighties, the Navy has not been able to acquire a sufficient force of Offshore Patrol Vessels considering the vastly increased requirement of safeguarding the maritime assets,… Read More »Role of OPVs

Malabar Exercise

The Manmohan Singh government has presented it as a fait accompli for the next Indian government to go ahead with the decision of inviting Japan in the revived multilateral Malabar naval exercise, a decision of far reaching strategic significance. If the coming Indian leadership shows guts, the trilateral Malabar may prove to be a game changer in India’s maritime military engagement. On the sea bed of the trilateral maritime exercise the three nations can build… Read More »Malabar Exercise

Bhutanese Refugees

Bidur Thapa remembers the day six years ago when he came to Nepal as a refugee from Bhutan. He struggled to understand the culture and language of his new land as most Bhutanese are unfamiliar with Nepalese way of life. Six years into the resettlement of tens of thousands of Bhutanese refugees to third countries from camps in Nepal, experts say there are lessons from the operation that can inform similar efforts around the world.… Read More »Bhutanese Refugees