How long can Pak sustain a war?

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In the last three months, according to various Indian intelligence estimates, the Pakistani army has shifted three more units from the border with India to the tribal areas of Waziristan or FATA. This brings to 100 the total number of units now deployed in fighting Taliban insurgents. To get a better sense of the size of these units, here's a breakup: Four division headquarters (a division is around 10,000 men) and 22 Brigade headquarters (a brigade is around 2,500 men). That brings the figure to 95,000 men of a total army of 700,000. It would be safe to assume the rest remain focussed on India. So the pitch by some quarters about the "changing Pakistani mindset" regarding India is to put it mildly misplaced. How long could Pakistan fight a war (other than the one in Waziristan)? From published reports, it seems the Pak army had geared itself....

Indians in headsight of the pirates of Puntland

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Ever heard of Puntland? What about Abdirahman Mohamed Mohamud? Well he's the president of this "state of Somalia", as the MEA describes it. It's the more stable part of the African Horn and he's in India seeking support for strong measures against piracy and training for his marine police. Mohamud's presence in India was largely ignored by the press but naval sources were hopeful the government would push "his excellency" hard on the issue of piracy from his soil. Although Mohamud has been vocal against pirates, sources said two merchant ships hijacked in April and May are anchored in the port of Baladeer, which is in Puntland. When asked Mohamud denied it, nor was he illuminating on how the port of Eyl (also in Puntland) is a pirate hub. Coincidentally, Mohamud's visit marked the first ever air strikes on pirate strongholds in Somalia. An EU naval helicopter....

India may be part of Operation Restore Hope-2 in Somalia

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Nineteen years after the failed attempt to restore hope in Somalia, it appears the West is getting ready for another crack at Africa's Horn. The EU Naval Force tasked with anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden has had its mandate extended to cover "Somali coastal territory and internal waters". This ends the policy of "no boots on the ground" in Somalia, opening the door to land and air strikes on pirate camps, transport and logistics. Top Indian Navy officers, just back from the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium in South Africa, confirmed the development, one of them indicating that intervention is perhaps the only long-term and permanent solution left for the international community. South Block is yet to formulate a response but with Somalia's transitional government agreeable to the European initiative, India, it would seem, could go in for similar fig leaf in the event a decision....

INS Chakra: The silent service under sea

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As records go, this could be it: An appendix surgery on board an Indian Navy submarine hundreds of feet below the sea. The sailor recovered and most interesting from an operational point of view, the sub never surfaced throughout the duration of the surgery. Naval rules don't allow the names of either the sailor or the sub to be disclosed, but it happened fairly recently. The submarine captain who told me this wouldn't be identified either. But the story has a bigger broader context. The formal unveiling of the INS Chakra, the navy's first operational nuclear powered attack submarine. As the rear admiral heading the submarine command in Vizag told us, the Chakra with its 190 mw nuclear reactor is a game changer in this region. The navy now has a sub with virtually unlimited endurance (at least 100 days) combined with high underwater speeds (33 knots). ....

Tracking the elusive 'Syrian Spring'

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At 82, Hassan Abdul Azim has seen it all: a reported 14 years in and out of the prisons of Syria's late President Hafez al Assad ... and now his son Bashar. He was underground last year also ... underground being a euphemism for the scores of secret prisons run by the regime's nine (at the last count) intelligence/secret police agencies. It was brief, his son informed us in the drawing room of a Damascus suburb, lasting no more than 12 days. It's not that the regime feared him but ahead of Bashar's plans for a referendum on what was described as a "draft democratic" constitution, the regime felt a little intimidation and arm twisting of real and perceived opponents would do no harm. Azim's latest incarceration came after he rejected feelers from the regime to become vice president. His point: "The post of vice president is powerless." In....

Is Pak army behind the rise of Imran Khan?

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Has Imran Khan's moment finally arrived? The euphoric press reports from across the border suggest that "Im the Dim" as he's sometimes called, is on a roll. Question: Is the army backing him? In fact, Imran's sudden rise may help explain some recent developments in Pakistan. According to a US-based analyst, the army's biggest worry today is the prospect of its Pashtun brethren breaking away to cast their lot with the Afghan Pashtuns, their kinfolk. There's enough bad blood the Punjabis have accumulated over the decades. More recently of course, it has been the bombing by the Pak Air Force and the relentless US drone strikes that have killed several Taliban commanders but many more innocent civilians. The mood in the tribal badlands clearly is not very forgiving. Add to that, the analyst says the army is no longer able to influence the course of events across the Durand....

Indian Army in Ladakh

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Ever heard of Chinese made polypropylene innerwear? It's standard issue for the Indian Army in the sub zero climes of Ladakh! It's a way of knowing your enemy, a young officer whispered. And did you know that all military and civil vehicles in that region move on jet fuel? Kerosene is added to diesel to ensure the latter doesn't freeze up. It's something to chew on as your vehicle alternately staggers, bucks and rolls through Ladakh's cratered Martian landscape. On a five day trip to no go areas like Demchok .. Pangong Tso and Chushul .. I was forcefully reminded as never before that our griping about Delhi's crumbling roads is unfair when compared to Ladakh which has none at all. On some stretches there's a thin layer of black asphalt but usually it's a mix of dirt trails and mule tracks with a column of stones on....

Rugged Pajero for jawans posted in Sikkim

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The Indian Army brigade facing the Chinese in north Sikkim has an unusual vehicle in its inventory: Mitsubishi Pajeros! The vehicles were specially procured after observing similar vehicles used by Chinese military personnel on their side of the border. The fact is northern Sikkim is no picnic. Over a distance of 60-70 km, the height rises from 15,000 feet to 19,000 feet. (The Chinese have it comparatively easier, they reach the same heights but rising gradually over 140 km). It puts considerable strain on army personnel not to mention vehicles and equipment. And given the poor state of roads there, the wear and tear is steep. Therefore the rugged Pajero. It didn't come easily. Apart from the army's stringent procurement procedures, the mandarins in the Finance Ministry were reported to have had many objections. Nevertheless the proposal went through for an undisclosed number of Pajeros and....

What Sikkim wants: A highway west of the Teesta

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The other day, an Air Force officer just back from Gangtok told me: "the situation in the north is grim. It's only now beginning to emerge." He wouldn't say more. The Army which is spread all over the north, has been even more reticent. The north is sensitive from a security and strategic point of view. It borders Chinese controlled Tibet .. and includes the famous Finger Area where Chinese troops had intruded around two years ago. But senior officers admitted a steady trickle of information is coming from Army units deployed there (information they refused to share with the media). But it appears the highway running north has been damaged, how seriously is still being determined. Bad enough to disrupt the flow of supplies to Army units and posts in the far north. Some posts are at heights ranging from 16,000 to 19,000 feet. The supply window is....

Time for an ISPR in Indian Army?

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Is it time for an Indian ISPR (Inter-Services Public Relations)? Given its Pakistani origins you could always call it something else as long as it serves the functional tri-service purpose. Many will admit the ISPR as the single point media reference is a good concept. It enables the armed forces to get their point across, timely and effectively, which is not the case in India. The three Service HQs in Delhi for instance cannot brief the media unless the Chiefs are doing it. And the chief cannot be briefing the media on every issue affecting the services. As per policies, no briefing is allowed without clearance from the DPR in the Ministry of Defence. But the civilian DPR lacks the expertise to brief on military matters. Besides, the DPR basically functions as the media outlet for the Defence Minister and matters falling within the domain of the MoD. It....