End of the Galwan Phase: A Crewdson-Like Fiction?
The instinctive reaction one has when viewing an image taken by New York-based photographer, Gregory Crewdson, is to mistake it for a still from a movie. With photographs that have been displayed in the J. Paul Getty Museum and Metropolitan Museum of Art, Crewdson’s unique photography style draws inspiration from cinematic greats including Steven Spielberg, but his images are carefully constructed, mundane scenes from everyday life: a family at dinner, a man in his yard, a car turning a corner.
It is only as you linger on each of his photographs, you notice the dramatic use of light to convey certain emotions through a seemingly banal image, and elements of the surreal incorporated into the tableau. Over interviews with the photographer, he asserts that one of the recurrent motivations of his work are to blur the lines between reality and fiction.
I would venture that for long term viewers of the India-China bilateral relationship, recent developments to disengage militarily at Galwan, may have initially seemed more fiction than fact. After four-long years, the decision however is cause for cautious optimism in Takshashila Director, Nitin Pai’s books.
Importantly, he highlights two key learnings from this bilateral decision to end the Galwan phase of India-China relations:
There are many lessons to learn from the Galwan phase. The two most important are the following. First, Beijing can achieve small boundary-related objectives by conducting aggressive military operations short of war. Second, that the asymmetric emotional significance of the border conflict is disadvantageous to India’s interests. Let me explain.
Click here to read more of Nitin’s commentary on the context in which this development plays out and a proposed way forward for both nations.
In the vein of notable changes to the India-China bilateral relationship, let’s take a closer look homeward to what changes may be needed for the Indian Armed Forces.
Indian Armed Forces: Transformation May be the Answer
Takshashila Co-Founder Narayan Ramachandran, has a few words to borrow from Lao Tzu, founder of Taoism, “When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be" in his recent article in The Mint, where he makes a case for a transformation for Indian armed forces.
He writes:
“Indian armed forces are organized around trained personnel, but will need to transform into ‘talent’ organizations. This is a non-trivial transformation at the scale required and countries around the world are struggling with the same project. India’s additional challenge is that it will need to make this transition while at the same time reducing gaps in conventional parity.”
Click here to read more of his insightful analysis on this pressing issue, including how the technological capability of Indian armed forces compares to the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council.
We continue onto an interesting dynamic brewing between Beijing and New Delhi.
Jostling to Lead the ‘Global South’: A New Facet of the India-China Relationship…
Takshashila Staff Researcher Anushka Saxena, joins our intrepid researchers in examining the China-India bilateral relationship, but teases out a new consideration in the dynamic: the role Beijing and New Delhi would like to play in leading the amorphous ‘Global South’ grouping.
Curious at the implications of this jostle between the capitals? Click here to take a closer look at her astute analysis.
A partnership that does see a great deal of promise however, is that between India and Taiwan. Continue on to learn more, dear reader.
Renewable Energy Partnership: India-Taiwan
Takshashila Staff Research Analyst, Anushka Saxena and Research Analyst, Rakshith Shetty, present a strong case for why conditions in the renewable energy sector may be ripe for bilateral collaboration between India and Taiwan, particularly given the shared “democratic values and a newfound sentiment of cooperation” between both countries.
They draw attention to the possible synergies between India’s renewable energy and battery research programmes and Taiwan’s major solar wafer producers including the TSEC Corporation and Green Energy Technology. Further, they highlight the possibility of an offshore manufacturing base for Taiwan in India, which may result in cheaper imports.
Click here to take a closer look at Anushka and Rakshith’s analysis, including why they believe the Sino-German Energy partnership may have lessons to offer Taiwan and India.
Now that we’re primed to take notes, let’s continue onward to other developments on the global stage, this time related to climate change diplomacy.
Methane Diplomacy: A Possibility?
In the lead up to the 29th Conference of Parties (COP29) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Takshashila Research Analyst, Rakshith Shetty, examines a particular pledge put forward by host country, Azerbaijan: cutting methane emissions from organic waste.
In his recent Op-Ed in The Hindu, he makes a robust case for why tackling methane emissions may be the most meaningful actions to “slow near-term temperature rise and buy time for the longer-term CO2 reductions needed to stabilise climate change”.
Click here to read more of his analysis on the implications for India, as the world’s third-largest source of anthropogenic methane emissions (emitting 409 million tons of CO2-equivalent methane in 2016) and why progress to tackle methane emissions in the country has been slow.
While progress on climate change diplomacy may be slow, it’s been a busy week in the Chagos. Read onto the next section to learn more.
Chaos in Chagos?
Takshashila Research Analyst with our High-Tech Geopolitics Programme, Lokendra Sharma, pulls back the curtain on the ever evolving complexities of the UK and Mauritius political agreement over the Chagos archipelago early last month.
In this recent blog on the issue, he examines the many geopolitical and geoeconomic considerations of the coveted territory including: resettlement of forcibly displaced Chaggosians, the significance of the island of Diego Garcia, the maritime boundary disagreements between the Maldives and Mauritius and India’s history of support for Mauritius’ claim to sovereignty over the Chagos archipelago.
Click here to take a closer look at his detailed examination of these geopolitical developments.
If geopolitical developments are your cup of tea, you're in good company. Continue on to see what interesting developments our researchers have been chatting about on the ATP podcast this week.
An ATP Video Special! China’s Military Infrastructure in Shigatse?
Watch this special All Things Policy (ATP) Episode, brought you to in full technicolor as Takshashila’s Head of the Geospatial Programme, Dr Y Nithiyanandam in conversation with Takshashila Adjunct Scholar Yusuf Unjhawala on China’s firing range including in Shigatse, Tibet, why it is here and what the implications are for India.
Click here to listen in!
Takshashila Tabletop Trove!
This new section of Dispatch is intended to be a digital repository of the books that sit in Takshashila’s physical office space in Bengaluru, Karnataka. So what’s this week’s book theme? Read on, curious reader.
This week’s theme is: Drawing Blurry Lines. In line with this, we recommend:
The Divider: Trump in the White House, 2017-2021 (Peter Baker & Susan Glasser)
Himalayan Blunder: The Curtain-Raiser to the Sino-Indian War of 1962 (Brig. J.P. Dalvi)
The Edge of Reason: Dispatches from the Frontiers of Cosmology (Anil Ananthaswamy)
Military Control in Pakistan: The Parallel State (Mazhar Aziz)
Cybersecurity and Cyberwar: What Everyone Needs to Know (P.W. Singer & Allan Friedman)
But Wait, There’s More!
We have a new Expert Capsule Course on offer: Introduction to Geospatial Science and Technology!
For those who are keen to learn about fascinating topics within this sector such as cartography and digital image processing from leading subject matter experts from across the country, over just four weeks.
Click here to apply, by November 12.
This edition of the Dispatch was written by Kripa Koshy, Programme Manager for Takshashila’s Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy.