Showing 1 - 10 of 10
How Iran is able to beat the US in its war
News, Brahma Chellaney, Published on 06/04/2026
» In a rambling address to the American people on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump claimed that the US war against Iran has been a success, vowing to "finish the job … very fast". It was a statement in obvious conflict with the facts. In reality, Iran has upended the model on which US interventionism has long relied.
Appeasing China won't help counter Trump
Oped, Brahma Chellaney, Published on 02/09/2025
» In 2020, China's stealth encroachments into India's Himalayan borderlands triggered deadly clashes and a prolonged military standoff that nearly erupted into war. Five years on, the border crisis remains largely unresolved, yet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is headed to China in an apparent effort to ease friction -- just when India is facing punishing tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump.
Testing the Trump-Modi bromance
Oped, Brahma Chellaney, Published on 15/02/2025
» Last time Donald Trump was president, ties between the United States and India flourished. But the bilateral relationship began to fray during Joe Biden's presidency, owing not least to divisions over the Ukraine war. Will Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's latest meeting with Mr Trump at the White House mark the first step toward restoring this critical relationship?
The deepening political turmoil in South Asia
Oped, Brahma Chellaney, Published on 15/08/2024
» Violent student-led, Islamist-backed protests in Bangladesh have toppled Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government, and mob attacks targeting those viewed as supporters of her secular Awami League party -- in particular, the country's dwindling Hindu minority -- are proliferating. At a time when neighbouring Myanmar is engulfed in violence and the Pakistan-Afghanistan belt remains fertile ground for cross-border terrorism, political upheaval in Bangladesh, two years after the overthrow of Sri Lanka's government, is the last thing India, the regional power, needs.
Bedlam reigns in Afghanistan and Pakistan
Oped, Brahma Chellaney, Published on 02/06/2023
» Afghanistan and Pakistan are sinking deeper into disarray, and the US bears a significant share of the blame. As long as this long-troubled region remains in turmoil, Islamist terrorism will continue to thrive, with grave implications for international security.
A declining America is focusing on the wrong enemy
Oped, Brahma Chellaney, Published on 17/02/2022
» Much of the democratic world would like the United States to remain the pre-eminent global power. But with the US apparently committed to strategic overreach, that outcome risks becoming unlikely.
Beijing's South China Sea grab
News, Brahma Chellaney, Published on 18/12/2018
» It has been just five years since China initiated its major land reclamation in the South China Sea, and the country has already shifted the territorial status quo in its favour -- without facing any international pushback. The anniversary of the start of its island building underscores the transformed geopolitics in a corridor central to the international maritime order.
'Belt and Road' is buckling under scrutiny
News, Brahma Chellaney, Published on 01/10/2018
» On a recent official visit to China, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad criticised his host country's use of major infrastructure projects -- and difficult-to-repay loans -- to assert its influence over smaller countries. While Dr Mahathir's warnings in Beijing against "a new version of colonialism" stood out for their boldness, they reflect a broader pushback against China's mercantilist trade, investment, and lending practices.
China poses threat to the environment
News, Brahma Chellaney, Published on 27/08/2018
» Asia's future is inextricably tied to the Himalayas, the world's tallest mountain range and the source of the water-stressed continent's major river systems. Yet reckless national projects are straining the region's fragile ecosystems, resulting in a mounting security threat that extends beyond Asia.
India faces difficult choice in the Maldives
Asia focus, Brahma Chellaney, Published on 26/02/2018
» The Maldives -- that beautiful Indian Ocean country comprising more than 1,000 coral islands -- is known the world over as a tranquil and luxurious travel destination. But the country is now being roiled by a political crisis so severe that international advisories are cautioning against travel there.