June 2016
Volume 7 issue 9
Joint Excercises Value of Military Diplomacy
editor-in-chief
I
ndia and the United States of America have asserted that the two countries are closing upon an agreement on the details of the long pending Logistics Supply Agreement (LSA). The agreement has been awaiting a signature for almost a decade and now, it is exhibiting symptoms of progress. Indian arguments against the LSA have hovered around its archaic comprehension of sovereignty. Miscellaneous words in the Indian discourse have gained traction, sovereignty is one of them. In an era, where a child can pilot a commercially available toy around the neighbourhood snooping at free will, it is quintessential that India reconsiders its approach to sovereignty as well. The LSA isn’t an easy fit, so is any other bilateral agreement especially the one between an expansive USA and a continuously insular India. Bilateral agreements are meant to fructify gains for both the parties involved. So India is treading on its gain-lines and is not mono-sided as many would opine the Indians to believe. Conjointly, it compels Indian policy makers to surmise and execute beyond the limitations imposed by territorial boundaries. It is an opportunity to implement beyond courtesy calls on friendly ports. To assimilate gains from the materialising synergy has been the impetus behind the two decades of Joint or Combined exercises. Grammatically, the two words are different but in the military lexicon, they are often interchangeably used. Either of the words, conveys the same significance that is sought by policy makers ie the sense of joint-ness with friendly foreign militaries. Operational joint-ness with another country or a group of like-minded countries is an extremely important policy statement that goes a long way in ameliorating relations and instilling confidence in the other. A full-fledged battle is always about having confidence in those around you. Joint and Combined training exercises are precisely about that endgame in mind – the possibility of conducting live operations together. The planning is always in an out of area operations; in the locus of lands disturbed by nature or by the shenanigans of mankind. In this new century, the Joint and Combined operational planning is imperative since a large swathe of land is under the sway of extreme politically inspired violence or comes under the attack of forces of nature that are beyond the scope of the affected country. Sri Lanka and Aceh province of Indonesia are a case in point following the devastating Asian tsunami of December 2014. There are other aspects of transnational jointness that also come under the purview of military diplomacy and which are just as important. They may not make the news but play an important role which cannot be understated. The sight of carrier battle groups exercising jointly or various combat aircrafts of different countries displaying gut wrenching manoeuvres, make for stunning visuals. Even the simple foot soldier parades their differing combat gear, sporting different equipment. All of these visuals make for some catchy stories. Equally important are the poor rain sodden cadets at military academies arriving from various countries but under the orders of the same directing staff and drill instructors. The fact that a country sends its future military leadership to a foreign land for training speaks volumes about the calibrated degrees of confidence between the nations which is in essence the main fillip behind the need to encourage military diplomacy. This is, after all, the aspect of diplomacy which provides for the greatest variety of options and equally varied solutions to the problems. And this is a field in which India has played an important role and could do much more. Even as the Indian military training establishments welcome cadets or officers from friendly foreign countries, New Delhi would do well to send more of its soldiers on foreign courses. There have been a number of cases where political clearance, which means the Ministry of External Affairs, has not been given or delayed, for Indianv vacancies in foreign courses. What is important for military knowledge is best left for the military to decide instead of a bureaucrat putting an indelible ink mark. Increasing Indian military presence in diplomatic missions across the globe is another insufficiently fulfilled aspect of military diplomacy. Untapped opportunities is India’s loss, not just that of its military.
Manvendra Singh June 2016
Defence AND security alert
1
publisher’s view
An ISO 9001:2008 Certified Magazine
Volume 7 | Issue 9 | June 2016 Chairman Shyam Sunder Publisher and ceo Pawan Agrawal President Urvashi J Agrawal Director Shishir Bhushan Editorial Editor-in-Chief Manvendra Singh Assistant Editor Diana Mehra Corporate Communication Mamta Jain Natasha Sales Anup Kumar Sinha Creative Alka Sharma Rohit Saini Representative (J&K) Salil Sharma Correspondent (Europe) Dominika Cosic Production Dilshad and Dabeer Webmaster Sundar Rawat IT Operations Ankit Kumar Photographer Subhash Circulation and Distribution Ashok Gupta E-mail: (first name)@dsalert.org info: info@dsalert.org articles: articles@dsalert.org subscription: subscription@dsalert.org online edition: online@dsalert.org advertisement: advt@dsalert.org Editorial and Corporate Office Prabhat Prakashan Tower 4/19, Asaf Ali Road New Delhi-110002 (India) +91-011-23243999, 23287999, 9958382999 info@dsalert.org | www.dsalert.org Disclaimer All rights reserved. Reproduction and translation in any language in whole or in part by any means without permission from Defence and Security Alert is prohibited. Opinions expressed are those of the individual writers and do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher and/or editors. All disputes are subject to jurisdiction of Delhi Courts.
‘It Takes Two To Make A Row’!
‘It takes two to make a row’! It is an exalted aphorism to accomplish common endeavours. I had learnt the dictum as a young student, but a robust fondness for it has retained its essence in my life and today I find myself a religious follower of its import in my personal and professional life. This practice has moulded me into what I am today and I staunchly believe that it’s one of the most vital adages which each person, group, community and the nation must unravel to be able to flourish and gain momentum ahead in the future. It’s not a mere maxim but a fervour which bridges entities for congruence in their growth and incessant progress in various ways. History is replete with illustrations on alliance formations among nations. But the definition of mettle of the armed forces have been dexterously resculptured within the last three to four decades were joint operations have become the norm for mutually magnifying the military prowess of States. Modern warfare and diplomatic relationships have necessitated that nations agree in unison to superlatively augment each other’s competence through osmosis of its resources primarily in military operations. Joint Exercises is a fundamental aspect of Military Diplomacy in the current geo-political locus as some States are known to jeopardise the paradigm of amity in the regional and global affairs. Hence, it has become imperative for States espousing for political and diplomatic tranquility to yoke with other analogous and prodigiously formidable States for Joint Exercises for efficacious Military Diplomacy to fortify the respective national interests. India is a developing State in the midst of diverse other states. India has been confronting extrusive and intrusive provocations, so it is met with the dire quintessential compulsion to orchestrate Joint Exercises with symmetrical nations. Born out of the concept of ahimsa (non-violence), India is an amicable State and covets for cordial relations with its neighbours. But at the same time, it has to preserve and consolidate the zeal, exuberance and camaraderie amongst its Defence Forces during peacetime and relay a message globally about its defence preparedness and power to counter any threat to its national security. Over the years, Defence Joint Operations have also aided in redressing the Calamities of Nature as was seen in the case of Tsunami stricken countries. India has one of the most battle-hardened Armed Forces in the world as, for decades since gaining independence; it has been confronted by overt and covert jeopardy from its neighbours. Its proficiency in mountain warfare, counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations are avidly been sought after and aspired for by other friendly countries and therefore, as a verity it finds its involvement in different joint exercises, an increasing characteristic in its relations with friends near and far. This edition of DSA has been compiled with the thoughts of our esteemed experts who have been involved in Joint Exercises during their association with the Indian Defence Forces at very senior positions and their thoughts will enable you, dear reader, to appreciate the importance of Joint Exercises for a clear and effective Military Diplomacy. I am sure that this edition will also be a strong reference edition for all who are concerned about national security. Jai Hind!
Defence and Security Alert is printed, published and owned by Pawan Agrawal and printed at Graphic World, 1686, Kucha Dakhini Rai, Daryaganj, New Delhi-110002 and published at 4/19, Asaf Ali Road, New Delhi (India). Editor: Manvendra Singh
2
May 2016 June 2016 Defence DefenceAND ANDsecurity securityalert alert
Pawan Agrawal
Contents TM
An ISO 9001:2008 Certified Magazine
Many Ways Of ‘Power Projection’ 04 Vice Admiral Pradeep Chauhan (Retd) ------------------------------------------------------------------------Military Diplomacy And National Interests 09 Air Chief Marshal Fali Homi Major (Retd) ------------------------------------------------------------------------Many Dimensions Of Interactions 11 Amb Dr Kanwal Sibal ------------------------------------------------------------------------A Component Of Military Diplomacy 14 Lt Gen Satish Nambiar (Retd) ------------------------------------------------------------------------Nurture Indo-Pacific ‘Quadrilateral Arrangement 17 Arun Prakash(Retd) ------------------------------------------------------------------------Cache Of Goodwill 20 Lt Gen Dalip Bhardwaj (Retd) ------------------------------------------------------------------------Indian Armed Forces HaveTaken The Plunge 24 Air Marshal BK Pandey (Retd) ------------------------------------------------------------------------Joint Training – How It Enhances Value Of India’s Military Diplomacy 27 Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain (Retd) ------------------------------------------------------------------------Pronounced Shift In Indian Attitude 32 Ashok Sajjanhar and Anuradha Sajjanhar ------------------------------------------------------------------------The Need To Restructure Institutional Framework 35 Lt Gen Kamal Davar (Retd) ------------------------------------------------------------------------Sweating In Peace Together 40 Brig Rahul K Bhonsle (Retd) ------------------------------------------------------------------------Multi-Dimensional Strategic Alliance 44 Dr Shalini Chawla ------------------------------------------------------------------------Beware Of Aggressive And Assertive Realignments 47 Lt Gen A S Lamba (Retd) ------------------------------------------------------------------------Conjunction Between Military And Diplomacy 50 Lt Gen Prakash Katoch (Retd) ------------------------------------------------------------------------Acquisition Of Fleet Tankers: A Convoluted Deal 53 Maj Gen Dr Mrinal Suman (Retd) ------------------------------------------------------------------------Are We Being Shortchanged? 56 Cecil Victor
DSA regrets the error in the placement of the ‘Author’s Profile’ of Air Marshal N V Tyagi in the May 2016 Edition and extends an apology for the inconvenience caused. DSA acknowledges that ‘Air Marshal N V Tyagi, PVSM, AVSM, VM, VSM (Retd) is the former Deputy Chief of Air Staff’
For online edition log on to
www.dsalert.org
June 2016
Defence AND security alert
3