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Ashok K Mehta
Ashok K Mehta is a retired Lt General of the Indian Army. He writes extensively on defence matters and anchors Defence Watch on Doordarshan
India’s wavering stand on Taliban
India will do well to reposition itself geopolitically to ensure Afghanistan becomes a neutral State and buffer to Chinese penetration of South Asia India has always wavered on the recognition, reconciliation and reintegration of Taliban. This goes back to more than a decade ago when India categorised it into ‘good’ Taliban...
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A tribute to Chandan, a large-hearted man
08 September 2021 | Ashok K Mehta -
The never-ending devastation of Af
25 August 2021 | Ashok K Mehta -
Afghanistan falling to the Taliban
11 August 2021 | Ashok K Mehta -
When politicos pass the buck to military
28 July 2021 | Ashok K Mehta -
Nepal’s judiciary rises to the occasion
14 July 2021 | Ashok K Mehta -
Is Afghanistan now up for grabs?
30 June 2021 | Ashok K Mehta -
Resistance to coup bleeds Myanmar
16 June 2021 | Ashok K Mehta
Heads or tails, Oli wins. Or, does he?
Our neighbourhood is in turmoil, democratically and constitutionally, but the ruling political powers there need to learn their lessons as well Call it a quirk of fate, constitutional fallibility or inspired interpretation of law, that every time the dice was rolled, it was Victory Oli facilitated by comrade in manipulation, President...
Nepal needs to quell the mess
Though not highly popular, and ironic, Oli looks better poised to form a Government. And the Himalayan State needs one The five most powerful and, according to a study of the Nepalese media, easily the most despised Prime Minister Nepal has ever had among the 43 who made it, was sworn...
The Myanmar crisis lingers on
The General has to decide whether to escalate the conflict or seek a temporary pact through a mediated political dialogue The most effective means of foiling a coup is a countercoup. In Myanmar, that will not happen as the military is rock solid and led by an officer corps that considers...
The conundrum gets trickier
The Supreme Court’s scathing judgment notwithstanding, Nepal's PM KP Oli has prorogued the House a second time After the Supreme Court of Nepal on February 23 overturned Prime Minister (PM) KP Oli’s decision to dissolve Parliament, he prorogued the House session on Monday afternoon. A two-year power struggle between Oli and his...
Myanmar coup cauldron simmers
The nation’s under-20 youth and ethnic armed organisations are solidly backing the unarmed civil disobedience movement In his book, Coup d’Etat, Edward Luttwak says that the coup is a more widespread way of changing governments than elections. In Myanmar, it is the coup-maker, the military itself, which has rubbished “rigged elections”...
PM’s Bangladesh visit will reinvigorate bond
Modi is the chief guest even as Dhaka and New Delhi have shown how neighbours can cohabit and thrive despite the ups and downs Indisputably, Bangladesh has turned out to be the sheet anchor of India’s “Neighbourhood First” policy, launchpad for “Act East” and Indo-Pacific strategy. Barring some issues over the...
Pact price less than cost of strained ties
China managed to get the strategic Chushul heights vacated on the cheap but India is portraying the partial disengagement as victory With five State elections planned over the next few months by accident or design, India might have hit a strategic sweet spot: Defusing its two-front standoff against China and Pakistan....
