Sun Tzu, the ancient Chinese military strategist, had long ago highlighted the significance of information warfare when he said, ‘all warfare is deception’. The term ‘Information Warfare’ entered military lexicon in the late ’70s, yet the strategy is as old as warfare itself. It has, however, continued to evolve with technological advancements.
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On 19th October, 1973, immediately following the Nixon administration’s affirmation of a USD 2.2 billion military aid package to Israel in the aftermath of the Yom Kippur War, the Arab states responded by imposing an oil embargo on nations supportive of Israel. The resultant oil price shock was so grave that in the United States, gasoline prices increased by up to 40 percent in a matter of months, leading to rationing of fuel resources, the formation of hours-long lines at gas stations across the country, and polarisation of politics at home.
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It is a genocide by all definitions. As of 6th November, Reuters, New York Times, AP News and New Arab news website have quoted the Ministry of Health in Gaza. According to these sources, a total of 10,022 Palestinians, including 4800 children and 2550 women have been killed and 25,408 wounded by the Israel’s indiscriminate aerial bombardment of Gaza. In contrast, Israeli death toll stands at 1400.
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The saga of Pakistan and the FATF is one that I have written about extensively, having been an ardent contributor and advocate for the strategy that led to the country’s ultimately successful exit from the dreaded gray-list. The crux of that strategy involved a twofold approach: (1) improving financial oversight, legal frameworks, and institutional coordination for the intrinsic benefit to the financial regime, but also (2) calling out the deeply-politicized and corrupt agenda of the FATF as a transboundary body run amok. This dual-approach yielded excellent results for Pakistan, and incidentally, the agent-provocateur of that tussle with the FATF is now up for a similar review.
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Israel-Palestine conflict has been the lynchpin of Middle Eastern dynamics for more than several decades. While tensions never truly subsided between the warring sides, the protracted conflict has often taken a back seat, overshadowed by other global crises such as the invasion of Crimea, onset of the Pandemic, and the Russian-Ukraine war, etc. However, the recent heartbreaking hostilities that have transpired since 7th October have made it global headline news.
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With the Lok Sabha elections around the corner in 2024, the debate around Indian electoral dynamics has attracted significant discourse. According to some estimates, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is likely to win the elections for a third consecutive term. However, the concerning matter is that BJP’s election campaign which should ideally be based on a vision of India’s future outlook; unfortunately revolves around exploiting anti-Pakistan sentiments.
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Over 76 years, India and Pakistan have shared many things: three wars, restrictions on the exchange of goods, interconnected history, and their universal love for the game of cricket. However, the ever-contentious state of affairs between the two countries has gradually impacted cricket. There has been no bilateral series between the two countries for over a decade, and the only time the two teams face each other is in international tournaments, such as the World Cup, Asia Cup, and the Champions Trophy.
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The question of our overall trade balance, how much we export and import, is one that has always been of significant concern, and one that has bedeviled many successive administrations, particularly those of recent times. It is generally ideal for a country to have a high level of both exports and imports, with roughly an equal amount of both. If exports are too great, there are negative effects such as strong appreciation of the currency, the need to reinvest surplus forex, and inflation.
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Recently in its foreign policy initiatives, China has emphasised the importance of mutual cooperation among nations to meet the collective goals of humanity, which it believes are harmoniously aligned. In this regard, Beijing has issued multiple documents – commonly referred to as white papers – proposing a common vision for a global community of shared future.
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The persistent violence by Israel has spanned decades, yet the recent escalation, in the aftermath of Hamas’s ‘Operation Al Aqsa’, is unparalleled. The overwhelming evidence of a massive humanitarian crisis in Gaza is deeply shocking and heart-wrenching.
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