Articles by Yogesh Joshi

On the wrong side of geography: Why is India tolerating Putin's Ukraine gambit?

ISAS academic Yogesh Joshi notes India's predicament of being unable to do as its Quad partners would like in voicing stronger objections to Russian actions in Ukraine. Historically, India has been dependent on Russia for military equipment and support, but more significantly, it is straitjacketed by the threat of China in its own backyard. This is motivation enough for it to do its level best not to send Russia into China's arms.

Yogesh Joshi

02 Mar 2022

Arms sales: A new vector of Sino-Indian competition in the Indo-Pacific

The sale of BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles to the Philippines, even when it is a product of collaboration with Russia, is the first indigenously developed weapon system India has sold in the region, and could drum up interest from other Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam and Indonesia. With this development, India-China competition in the Indo-Pacific is set to increase as India sends a signal that it is able and willing to respond in kind if China continues to arm India's adversaries and influence its neighbours.

Yogesh Joshi

16 Feb 2022

India-China space race: The role of the private sector

As geopolitical competition among global powers extends into outer space, major players are looking at how the private sector can play a bigger part in the space race and boost national space venturing capabilities. Yogesh Joshi and Ashmita Rana note that while India's space expenditure stands at only one-sixth of China's, and the latter seems to be leading the way in working with its private space firms, India's great ambitions and edge over China in working with global partners may give it a greater push to catch up.

Yogesh Joshi

19 Jan 2022

India and Russia remain on opposite sides of the Indo-Pacific's balance of power

Russian President Vladimir Putin's recent visit to New Delhi should be seen as one of correcting the downward slide in India-Russia relations rather than a celebration of an age-old strategic partnership, says Yogesh Joshi. Against the backdrop of a rising China, India feels the threat of strengthening Russia-China relations and the latter's engagement of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Meanwhile, India-US relations have taken on greater strategic significance, and Russia may be wary of India's involvement in the Quad. With divergent national interests and threat perceptions likely to continue, will it be harder for both powers to find themselves on the same side?

Yogesh Joshi

30 Dec 2021

Taiwan and Indo-Pacific are the primary targets of China's hypersonic glide vehicle

Recent news that China had launched a rocket carrying a hypersonic glide vehicle sounded an alarm. Mastery of such technology would mean that China would gain speed, manoeuvrability and surprise in their response, and the fine balance among nuclear-armed states could be upset. From China's perspective, their nuclear deterrent would be more credible and they would be better able to defend their interests vis-à-vis Taiwan and the Indo-Pacific. No matter the intentions, this might mean rattled nerves and an increased presence of US missile defence systems in the Indo-Pacific.

Yogesh Joshi

01 Nov 2021

With AUKUS, Southeast Asia may become a more intense battleground

Yogesh Joshi points out that the new AUKUS shows an American recognition of the military threat from China, which is assessed to have the world's largest navy. Such anxiety has the US sharing its most prized military technology of nuclear propulsion with Australia, something it has never done with any country except the UK. With the US determined to maintain primacy in the Indo-Pacific, will there be a greater chance of inadvertent escalation of tensions? Will the Southeast Asian region suffer the brunt of heightened risks?

Yogesh Joshi

28 Sep 2021

Quad now centrepiece in India's China strategy

In the past, India was reticent about participating in the Quad. But amid China's growing military, economic and diplomatic assertiveness and India's decreasing capability to balance China on its own, the prospect of a Quad mechanism to help it do so is looking more attractive. At the recent first Quad summit, leaders committed to expanding vaccine production in India and building resilient supply chains. If all stars align, India is set to play a greater role in the Quad. How will it use this to its advantage in Sino-Indian relations? Yogesh Joshi analyses the issue.

Yogesh Joshi

09 Apr 2021

South China Sea: The new frontier of Sino-Indian tussle in the Himalayas?

India's step to send a warship to the South China Sea (SCS) following the clash in the Galwan Valley in the middle of last year proved a point - that it is prepared to link security in the Himalayas to the SCS, which it had erstwhile regarded as a secondary area of interest. Will China bristle at India's continued quest for leverage and will chances of an accidental escalation in the SCS be raised overall?

Yogesh Joshi

01 Mar 2021