The 2014 Indian elections gave the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) a clear mandate to form the government. In nearly more than a decade of coalition politics, it is perhaps the first time the leading party of the coalition is not dependent on its partners for the government’s functioning. The mandate it received in the election led the BJP to become the single-largest party in the government and the Parliament, for the first time in over thirty years.

The Pakistan-India relationship has been marked by both peaks and troughs, and scepticism and suspicion of each other’s motives has never been far behind. The two states were one till independence and, more importantly, the two armed forces were one. They had fought wars together before they fought wars with each other.

Indian foreign policy has made tremendous progress since the collapse ofthe Berlin Wall. Today, India is being seen as an important regional powerand a responsible global player. It is the goal of India’s foreign policy toachieve major power status for the country in the international arena.This ambition has been a common thread in the policies of all politicaldispensations to have ruled the country. To achieve this stated goal, Indianeeds to be pragmatic and instead of being guided by the past, it has tolook at safeguarding its interest in the future.

The Indian Army today faces a very complex challenge. It is increasingly becoming clear that the kind of wars that were fought a few decades ago are not going to be fought in the future. The nature of warfare is changing from conventional warfare to one that is ‘sub-conventional’. Rivalries among nations continue to exist but the spheres of these rivalries now focus on economic capabilities and strengths.