|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Asian Strategic and
Military Perspective
The Observer Research Foundation that has put together this book covering 31 Asian countries from Afghanistan to United Arab Republic (missing out for some reasons, Russia, the major geographic part of which lies in North Asia could certainly have been included within the Asian fold) has analysed broadly the imperatives that govern the overall strategic stance and outlook of this vast land mass in external and security-related matters, enumerating the strengths and weaknesses in governance, and the likely growth perspective in the years to come. Though a few hurdles come in the way of writing such a book that necessarily becomes so vast in scope and detail, a personality assessment of the rulers of these developing countries, including their humanitarian approach towards the people whose destinies they control, would certainly have enlivened this over 400-odd pages book. In the present study, the coverage of the foreign policy formulation of a nation, commensurate with its own national interests, has been somewhat inadequate in many cases. Pakistan or Bangladesh, for instance, will follow a foreign policy that suits their strategic formulations, and not as we in India would like to see. It has to say for the present work that after the Foreword and Introduction, the countries have been just tagged together alphabetically and the work ends as abruptly as it had started. One alternative could have been a grouping of South, South East and Central Asia, where the problems faced and the aspirations are common in many cases. Yet the book produces some interesting pieces of information, provided it can be vouchsafed by official sources. The US taxpayer spends $33,000 monthly to maintain one soldier in Iraq, whereas in Afghanistan the figure steeply rises to $1,20,000 for the same individual. Staying on in Afghanistan, however, it would not be accurate or correct to state that in the 1980s, there were 10 million Pashtuns in Pakistan and 6 million in Afghanistan, since in spite of all the information at our disposal in the Indian Embassy, where I was then posted, it was quite impossible to come to some accurate estimates in this regard because of the porous nature of the Durand Line. In Israel, military service is compulsory for both men and women over 18 years of age—in combat positions, three years for both and in non-combat positions, only two years are mandatory for women The men have to serve one month each year in reserve service up to the age of 45. I hope the GoI is aware of all this and thinking of imposing similar service conditions for some of our wayward youth. In China, the Army is not only an "instrument of force", but also an institution for nation building. This is a view that this reviewer has long held in regard to the Indian Army, too. Unfortunately, vested political interests in all major political parties have make civil governance in India an exclusive domain of the civilian masters. The Indian Army has 35,000 Nepal domiciled Gurkha soldiers, but a bulk of the Gurkhas from Nepal now join the British, Brunei and Singapore armies since the pay and perks are more attractive in these countries. About Bangladesh, the book says, "In Bangladesh’s perception, India will continue to be the main adversary", due to the Indian big brother syndrome and the geographic hemming in of this neighbour by India on most sides. It is clear that in recent times, especially after the end of the Cold War, Asia has overtaken Europe and the Atlantic Rim countries in strategic importance and consequent world attention. The wave of "jehad" and international terrorism has engulfed many countries in the region and upgraded the threat perceptions in the field of unconventional warfare. The terror strikes on soft targets, making weak governments prone to subversion and takeovers. This book provides a timely addition to the continuing studies on a turbulent Asia, though one would wish that the author had dwelt more on the foreign policy compulsions and apprehensions of the smaller neighbouring countries straddling India, and what India needs to do about this nagging aspect that is winning it very few friends in the last two decades. |
W