S P Seth

In the midst of so many crisis points in the world, the potential of a sudden flare-up in the South China Sea is not as seriously recognised as it should be. This flash point arises from China’s sovereignty claims to a cluster of Islands in the South China Sea and the waters surrounding them, with […]

Much was made when China supported the latest Security Council resolution for further sanctions against North Korea, following its testing of a third nuclear device. Undoubtedly, by voting with the rest of the Security Council to make it a unanimous decision, China was signaling its unhappiness with Pyongyang for going its own way against the […]

Australia, now and then, gets excited about Asia. It happened again, a while ago, when Prime Minister Julia Gillard presented a white paper, “Australia in the Asian century.” It outlines a policy over the next decade-and-half to connect more deeply with Australia’s Asian neighbourhood to make the best use of new economic opportunities in a […]

With the confirmation of Xi Jinping as China’s new president this month at the National People’s Congress (NPC), the political transition from the outgoing leader, Hu Jintao, would be complete. Indeed, the transition effectively had taken place last November when the Communist Party of China (CPC) chose Xi as its general secretary, because all political […]

Pakistan is tearing itself apart. The killing of Hazaras (and Shias in general) is one example of this. Its fallout has even reverberated in far away Australia, with Hazaras here protesting against the ‘genocide’ in Pakistan. Even though the Pakistan government has promised action to nab the culprits of the recent attack in Quetta, killing […]

Pakistan is tearing itself apart. The killing of Hazaras (and Shias in general) is one example of this. Its fallout has even reverberated in far away Australia, with Hazaras here protesting against the ‘genocide’ in Pakistan. Even though the Pakistan government has promised action to nab the culprits of the recent attack in Quetta, killing […]

North Korea’s recent testing of its third atomic device has created alarm among its neighbours, South Korea and Japan. And it has also brought about the condemnation of the Security Council and the demand for further tightening of already tight sanctions against the regime. Its closest friend and neighbour, China, is also unhappy and has […]

The Arab Spring is turning into a long winter of despair. Tunisia — the country where it all started, and was making some headway — is in trouble with the murder of a prominent opposition leader who was a strong and vocal critic of the country’s Islamist government. Chokri Belaid, head of the leftwing Democratic […]

Mali is in the news these days. Why is that so? Because it is feared that it might be the next Afghanistan as the centre of global terrorism. According to the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, all of North Africa is becoming a ‘magnet’ for jihadists from other countries and that the threat there now […]

Will Israel’s internal politics make much difference to how it will deal with the Palestinian issue? The question arises in the context of elections in Israel. The answer is: whether it has a right wing, left wing or centre-right government, most Israelis — apart from a small number bothered by their conscience and human rights […]