“India has several millennia old historical, cultural and civilisational links with Central Asia. Brisk trade of goods, ideas, and thoughts took place from India (and China) to Central Asia and beyond over the Silk Road from 3rd century BC to 15th century AD. Buddhism travelled to Afghanistan, Central Asia and Western China from India through the Silk Road. Alexander of Macedonia, Kushans, Babur, and Mughals and Sufism are evidence of vigorous links between India and the region over the age...

Since 1947, Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution has proclaimed that ‘the Japanese people forever renounce war’. This clause, imposed under American supervision, has transformed the archipelago into an economic giant but a strategic dwarf. In 2025, however, the gap between this pacifism in principle and the security reality has never been more glaring. Faced with an increasingly threatening neighborhood, Tokyo is rearming and testing the limits of its legal framework.

A Hardening ...