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981. India’s Strategic Choices: China and the Balance of Power in Asia

Author:
Rajesh Rajagopalan
Publication Date:
09-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:
India is a rising power, but its transformation is occurring in the shadow of China’s even more impressive ascent. Beijing’s influence will almost certainly continue to grow and has already upset Asia’s geopolitical balance. India must decide how to secure its interests in this unbalanced environment by choosing among six potential strategic options: staying unaligned, hedging, building indigenous military power, forming regional partnerships, aligning with China, or aligning with the United States. A closer alignment with Washington likely represents India’s best chance to counter China, while efforts to foster regional partnerships and cultivate domestic military capabilities, although insufficient by themselves, could play a complementary role.
Topic:
International Affairs
Political Geography:
India

982. Are India-Pakistan Peace Talks Worth a Damn?

Author:
Ashley Tellis
Publication Date:
09-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:
The international community’s routine call for continuous India-Pakistan dialogue is not only misguided but also counterproductive. This entreaty, which often follows major Pakistani-supported terrorist attacks in India, fails to recognize that the security competition between the two nations is not actually driven by discrete, negotiable differences. Rather, the discord is rooted in long-standing ideological, territorial, and power-political antagonisms that are fueled by Pakistan’s irredentism, its army’s desire to subvert India’s ascendency as a great power and exact revenge for past Indian military victories, and its aspirations to be treated on par with India despite their huge differences in capabilities, achievements, and prospects.
Topic:
International Affairs
Political Geography:
India

983. When corruption is the operating system

Author:
Sarah Chayes
Publication Date:
05-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:
In some five dozen countries worldwide, corruption can no longer be understood as merely the iniquitous doings of individuals. Rather, it is the operating system of sophisticated networks that cross sectoral and national boundaries in their drive to maximize returns for their members. Honduras offers a prime example of such intertwined, or “integrated,” transnational kleptocratic networks. This case thus illustrates core features of the way apparently open or chaotic economies are in reality structured worldwide—and some of the dynamics that are driving climate change, persistent inequality, and spiraling conflict.
Topic:
Corruption and International Affairs
Political Geography:
Honduras

984. Official Islam in the Arab World: The Contest for Religious Authority

Author:
Nathan Brown
Publication Date:
05-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:
All Arab states have large, official Muslim religious establishments that give governments a major role in religious life. These establishments have developed differently, according to each state’s historical experience. Through them, the state has a say over religious education, mosques, and religious broadcasting—turning official religious institutions into potent policy tools. However, the complexity of the religious landscape means they are rarely mere regime mouthpieces and it can be difficult to steer them in a particular direction.
Topic:
Islam and International Affairs
Political Geography:
Global Focus

985. Policing Practices in a Global Perspective

Author:
Peter Albrecht
Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies
Abstract:
Policing in the global North and the global South is becoming more alike. An increasingly common characteristic is the blurring of boundaries between rule-based and more personalized policing styles. Reasons for this approximation include a growing focus on fighting or preventing radicalisation globally, and a general debureaucratisation of policing that has occurred in the global North.
Topic:
Defense Policy and International Affairs
Political Geography:
Global Focus

986. Africa Needs more Roads To Progress, Not Less

Author:
Hans Lucht
Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies
Abstract:
With no credible state in Libya, the EU is focused on putting the brakes on transit migration in the Sahelian countries. But closing the important Niger–Libya corridor through increased militarisation is detrimental to progress in this impoverished region.
Topic:
International Affairs and International Development
Political Geography:
Africa

987. Refugees in Turkey struggle as border walls grow higher

Author:
Ida Vammen and Hans Lucht
Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies
Abstract:
Since the EU and Turkey sealed a migration deal in 2016, millions of refugees have been living on the fringes in Turkey. Without long-term solutions, they will continue to risk their lives by embarking on new, dangerous routes to Europe.
Topic:
International Affairs and Refugee Crisis
Political Geography:
Europe and Turkey

988. The Weaponisation of Information

Author:
Flemming Splidsboel Hansen
Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies
Abstract:
“The weaponization of information” alerts us to the thinking about the very conscious use of information to achieve various goals. Moreover, it reminds us of the new opportunities offered by modern information technology.
Topic:
International Affairs and Information Age
Political Geography:
Global Focus

989. From Pirate ports to special economic zones: Violence, Regulation and port-making in the Somali peninsular

Author:
Jatin Dua
Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies
Abstract:
Much of the existing scholarship on the Somali peninsula is informed by territorialized assumptions focusing on pastoralism or overland trading. In this working paper Jaitin Dua, an anthropologist and assistant professor at the University of Michigan, proposes a ‘maritime’ view on the Somali economy that highlights the role of ships, ports and seas. Comparing the three port cities of Benderbeyla, Bosaso and Djibouti the author provides insights into the nexus between violent capture, regulation and sovereignty across the Somali territories. What emerges are different modes of port-making that are closely related to global circulation. By bringing the sea back into Somali studies and contemporary anthropology, Dua offers an innovative interpretation of state formation dynamics. This DIIS Working Paper is part of the GOVSEA PAPER SERIES (Governing Economic Hubs and Flows in Somali East Africa)
Topic:
Corruption and International Affairs
Political Geography:
Somalia

990. Afghan Narcotrafficking: A Joint Policy Assessment

Author:
Tony Bricktua
Publication Date:
08-2017
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
EastWest Institute
Abstract:
The EastWest Institute (EWI) has released Afghan Narcotrafficking: A Joint Policy Assessment, the sixth and final report from the institute’s Joint U.S.-Russia Working Group on Afghan Narcotrafficking, which provides a comprehensive and updated assessment of the Afghan drug trade and the role that both the United States and Russia might be able to play in countering this shared threat.
Topic:
International Affairs and Narcotics Trafficking
Political Geography:
Afghanistan