{"id":685,"date":"2026-07-18T21:56:51","date_gmt":"2026-07-18T16:26:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/?p=685"},"modified":"2026-08-19T03:48:38","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T22:18:38","slug":"download-psir-gs2-daily-brief-18-july-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/download-psir-gs2-daily-brief-18-july-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Allies without trust, engagement without recognition, partnership without alliance \u2014 PSIR &#038; GS2 Brief, 18 July 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"bf\">\n<div class=\"bf-shell\">\n<header class=\"bf-head\">\n<p class=\"bf-stand\">Today&#8217;s brief reads three articles. Heather A. Conley in Foreign Affairs argues that American threats over Greenland could spoil the Arctic defence the United States needs from its allies. Puspa Kumari of the Vivekananda International Foundation shows India working with Afghanistan through farming, and withholding recognition from the Taliban government. Philip Green in The Hindu counts what Australia and India signed during the Melbourne visit.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bf-meta\"><b>PSIR &amp; GS2 Daily Brief \u00b7 Issue 103<\/b><span class=\"d\">\u00b7<\/span>18 July 2026<span class=\"d\">\u00b7<\/span>Paper II-A, Paper II-B<span class=\"d\">\u00b7<\/span>Amit Pratap Singh<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"bf-get\"><b>Issue 103 as a PDF<\/b><span>The full brief, ready to print for your folder.<\/span><a href=\"\/psir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Daily-brief-Issue-103.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Download PDF<\/a><\/div>\n<section class=\"bf-item\">\n<div class=\"bf-eyebrow\">Paper II-A \u00b7 International Relations<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"bf-h2\">American pressure on Greenland and Canada could spoil the Arctic defence the United States needs.<\/h2>\n<div class=\"bf-src\"><b>Foreign Affairs<\/b><span class=\"d\">\u00b7<\/span>Heather A. Conley<span class=\"d\">\u00b7<\/span>17 July 2026<span class=\"d\">\u00b7<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.foreignaffairs.com\/arctic-antarctic\/dangerous-game-arctic\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Read the article<\/a><\/div>\n<p>Heather A. Conley writes about the Arctic after a crisis the United States made itself. In January the White House said that taking Greenland was a matter of national security. It said the use of the American military was one of the options. Greenland and Denmark refused, and the threat was withdrawn a few days later. Conley argues that the episode did push Canada and the Nordic countries to spend far more on Arctic defence. It also left them with doubts about the country that leads their alliance. Her case is that the United States cannot hold the Arctic alone. Russia and China are already working there. The allies own the radar, the ports and the ships that watch the northern seas. If Washington keeps pressing them over territory, they will build against it instead of with it.<\/p>\n<h4>The record<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>In early January the White House said that acquiring Greenland was a national security priority of the United States. It said the options included the use of the American military.<\/li>\n<li>The Prime Minister of Greenland, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, said the future of the island would be decided by the people of Greenland. The Prime Minister of Denmark, Mette Frederiksen, said that an American attack on Greenland would be the day NATO stopped.<\/li>\n<li>Danish and other European NATO forces went to Greenland for a sudden exercise. Danish forces were told to destroy airport runways and to fire on invading forces.<\/li>\n<li>Canada promised $28 billion in March 2025 for its Arctic radar system and for NORAD, the air defence system it runs with the United States. In March it added $29 billion for three forward operating sites, military satellite communications and Arctic airports.<\/li>\n<li>Denmark has set aside more than $6 billion for three Arctic patrol vessels, long range drones and air radar surveillance.<\/li>\n<li>China keeps a fleet of five icebreakers. It divides them between the waters north of Alaska and the waters between Greenland and the Siberian coast. It is mapping the Arctic sea floor for minerals.<\/li>\n<li>Congress has funded the building of up to three heavy icebreakers and 11 medium icebreakers.<\/li>\n<li>The British Defence Ministry says Russian submarine and surface activity in British offshore waters rose by nearly 30 percent between 2023 and 2025.<\/li>\n<li>Seven NATO members hold Arctic territory. They are Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden and the United States. Their foreign ministers said in May that they would work together more closely on security.<\/li>\n<li>No single American command answers for the whole Arctic. Alaska and Greenland come under Northern Command. Northern Europe comes under European Command. The Arctic army units based in Alaska come under Indo-Pacific Command, which has no Arctic duties.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>The argument<\/h4>\n<p>The article is a case study in alliance politics. Conley separates two things that answers often run together. One is military capability. The other is the trust that allows allies to use it together. In the Arctic the second is now harder to find. Carry that distinction into any answer on <span class=\"bf-term\">balance of power and deterrence<\/span>.<\/p>\n<p>The Arctic also shows what <span class=\"bf-term\">national interest, security and power<\/span> look like on a map. The northern seas carry submarines, cables and missiles. A gap in the radar of one country is a gap in the defence of all seven. India can read this against its own dependence on partners in the Indian Ocean.<\/p>\n<p>For an answer on the <span class=\"bf-term\">collapse of the Soviet Union<\/span> and on American hegemony, the piece is evidence that the leading state can weaken its own position. Washington pressed Canada and Denmark over their territory. Both then began to plan for defence against the United States as well as with it.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bf-quote\">\n<p>&#8220;Arctic security is too critical for the United States to afford to exclude any of its allies.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><cite>Heather A. Conley<\/cite><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<section class=\"bf-item\">\n<div class=\"bf-eyebrow\">Paper II-B \u00b7 India and the World<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"bf-h2\">India works with the ministries in Kabul through farming and still withholds recognition.<\/h2>\n<div class=\"bf-src\"><b>Vivekananda International Foundation<\/b><span class=\"d\">\u00b7<\/span>Puspa Kumari<span class=\"d\">\u00b7<\/span>16 July 2026<span class=\"d\">\u00b7<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vifindia.org\/article\/2026\/july\/16\/Expanding-Cooperation-through-Agriculture-India-s-Efforts-to-Address-the-Development-Needs-of-Afghans\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Read the article<\/a><\/div>\n<p>Puspa Kumari writes about a visit that was about seed and water rather than about politics. The Afghan Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock came to Delhi in July 2026. He met Indian ministers and the country&#8217;s farm research bodies. The two sides agreed to set up a joint working group. Kumari argues that agriculture is now the most practical way for India to remain present in Afghanistan. It reaches Afghans who face hunger. It does not give the Taliban government the recognition it wants.<\/p>\n<h4>The record<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Attaullah Omari, the Afghan Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock, was in Delhi from 7 to 12 July 2026. His was the fourth visit by an Afghan minister since the Taliban took power in Kabul in August 2021.<\/li>\n<li>The two sides agreed to set up a joint working group to take the engagement further.<\/li>\n<li>The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification found that about 17.4 million Afghans faced food insecurity. Of them, 4.7 million were in Phase 4, the emergency level, in March 2026.<\/li>\n<li>Farming gives an income to 80 percent of the people of Afghanistan. World Bank data show that farm land covers almost 13 percent of the country.<\/li>\n<li>Farming takes 98 percent of the water drawn in Afghanistan. Homes and industry take one percent.<\/li>\n<li>The ban on poppy in 2022 removed income equal to 10 to 15 percent of the lawful gross domestic product of Afghanistan.<\/li>\n<li>Afghan assets worth $9 billion are frozen in western banks. More than 5.4 million Afghans have been forced back from Pakistan and Iran since 2023.<\/li>\n<li>India has committed more than $3 billion to over 500 projects in Afghanistan. Kumari calls it the largest donor in the region.<\/li>\n<li>The known Indian works are the Afghan-India Friendship Dam, once the Salma Dam, the building of the Afghan Parliament, and the 218 km Zaranj-Delaram highway that reaches the port of Chabahar in Iran.<\/li>\n<li>The delegation met Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. It also went to NABARD, ICAR, IARI and CIMMYT to see how Indian farm research is organised.<\/li>\n<li>India has given scholarships to 1000 Afghans. Trade between the two countries is set to reach $1 billion.<\/li>\n<li>The Taliban charge d&#8217;affaires in Delhi, Noor Ahmad Noor, asked India for help with farming. He said trade had gone on even so, and pointed to the disruption in the Chabahar project and in land route connectivity.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>The argument<\/h4>\n<p>The visit shows engagement without recognition. India deals with the ministries in Kabul and has not recognised the government that runs them. That is the line to hold in answers on <span class=\"bf-term\">continuity and change in Indian foreign policy<\/span> and on India and its neighbours in South Asia.<\/p>\n<p>The figures explain the choice. Hunger, water scarcity and the loss of poppy income tell you why Kabul asks Delhi for seed and irrigation rather than for arms. A state that cannot feed its people will take help from whoever offers it. India would rather that partner be itself than Pakistan or China.<\/p>\n<p>Keep two or three of the Indian projects by name. The Friendship Dam, the Parliament building and the Zaranj-Delaram highway are the standard evidence for India as a development partner in an answer on aid and <span class=\"bf-term\">determinants of foreign policy<\/span>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bf-quote\">\n<p>&#8220;For India, it is not about viewing Afghanistan only through instability and security apparatus.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><cite>Puspa Kumari<\/cite><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<section class=\"bf-item\">\n<div class=\"bf-eyebrow\">Paper II-B \u00b7 India and the World<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"bf-h2\">The Melbourne visit turned Australian goodwill into agreements on defence, uranium and the sea.<\/h2>\n<div class=\"bf-src\"><b>The Hindu<\/b><span class=\"d\">\u00b7<\/span>Philip Green<span class=\"d\">\u00b7<\/span>20 July 2026<span class=\"d\">\u00b7<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/opinion\/op-ed\/much-more-than-melbourne-meets-modi\/article71241959.ece\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Read the article<\/a><\/div>\n<p>Philip Green is the High Commissioner of Australia to India. He writes after the visit of Narendra Modi to Australia from 8 to 10 July 2026. The crowd in Melbourne filled the news. Green argues that what the two governments signed matters more than the crowd. Modi and Anthony Albanese agreed on defence and security, on cyber and supply chains, on energy and on the sea. Green gives three reasons for the growth. The two countries are steady partners at a time when the region is unsettled. Their economies fit together, because Australia sells energy, minerals and education while India builds its industry. The Indian community in Australia is the fastest growing there.<\/p>\n<h4>The record<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Narendra Modi was in Australia from 8 to 10 July 2026.<\/li>\n<li>The two Prime Ministers agreed on a new Joint Declaration on Defence and Security Cooperation for the Indo-Pacific.<\/li>\n<li>They agreed on a new Partnership on Cyber, Critical Technologies and Supply Chains.<\/li>\n<li>They issued a statement on energy security. It makes Australian uranium exports to India for peaceful use possible.<\/li>\n<li>They agreed a Maritime Security Collaboration Roadmap for work in the Indian Ocean between the two countries.<\/li>\n<li>They agreed a sports playbook. India is to host the Commonwealth Games and is bidding for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.<\/li>\n<li>Australian Super, the largest pension fund in Australia, decided to put half a billion dollars, or \u20b93,360 crore, into India&#8217;s National Investment and Infrastructure Fund Limited.<\/li>\n<li>Australian companies have committed tens of billions of dollars to build data centres across India.<\/li>\n<li>Eight Australian universities have undertaken to open branch campuses in India. One is the University of New South Wales, which stands in the global top 20. Its campus opens later this year.<\/li>\n<li>The two countries plan a yearly showing of Australian culture and business called G&#8217;Day Namaste. It will begin when the Australian Big Bash League plays its first game outside Australia in December this year.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>The argument<\/h4>\n<p>Australia is a partner and not an ally. No treaty binds the two states to fight together. They still share plans for defence, for cyber security and for the sea. Use that in answers which ask whether India must choose between alignment and alliance. India is building deep partnerships and signing no alliance.<\/p>\n<p>Australia has agreed to supply uranium for the peaceful nuclear programme of India. Put that in an answer on <span class=\"bf-term\">India and the Nuclear Question<\/span> It is an example of a state that mines uranium agreeing to sell it to India for peaceful use.<\/p>\n<p>The three reasons Green gives are a ready frame for <span class=\"bf-term\">determinants of foreign policy<\/span>. A region in flux, economies that fit together and a community of people that links two states. The last is the one candidates forget. Australia counts the Indian community there as a reason of state.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bf-quote\">\n<p>&#8220;Relationships grow when the objective conditions are fertile.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><cite>Philip Green<\/cite><\/div>\n<div class=\"bf-quote\">\n<p>&#8220;Not all bilateral relationships have that just now, so we should celebrate it.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><cite>Philip Green<\/cite><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<section class=\"bf-syl\">\n<h3>Where this belongs in your syllabus<\/h3>\n<p class=\"s\">Open the note and read the full topic.<\/p>\n<div class=\"bf-chips\"><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/national-interest-security-and-power\/\">National interest, security and power<\/a><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/balance-of-power-and-deterrence\/\">Balance of power and deterrence<\/a><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/realist-approach\/\">Realist approach<\/a><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/collapse-of-the-soviet-union-unipolarity-and-american-hegemony\/\">Collapse of the Soviet Union, unipolarity and American hegemony<\/a><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/vision-of-a-new-world-order\/\">Vision of a new world order<\/a><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/transnational-actors-and-collective-security\/\">Transnational actors and collective security<\/a><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/india-and-the-usa\/\">India and the USA<\/a><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/india-and-china\/\">India and China<\/a><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/india-and-russia\/\">India and Russia<\/a><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/afghanistan-iraq-and-west-asia\/\">Afghanistan, Iraq and West Asia<\/a><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/india-and-south-asia-the-neighbours\/\">India and South Asia \u2014 the neighbours<\/a><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/continuity-and-change-in-indian-foreign-policy\/\">Continuity and change in Indian foreign policy<\/a><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/determinants-of-foreign-policy\/\">Determinants of foreign policy<\/a><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/india-and-the-nuclear-question\/\">India and the Nuclear Question<\/a><a class=\"bf-chip\" href=\"\/psir\/notes\/india-s-look-east-policy\/\">India\u2019s \u201cLook East\u201d policy<\/a><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<section class=\"bf-q\">\n<h3>The questions this feeds<\/h3>\n<p class=\"s\">Questions from earlier years that today&#8217;s reading speaks to. Where the answer is written, the red link opens it. The full set is in the <a href=\"\/psir\/pyq-vault\/\">PYQ Vault<\/a>.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><b>PSIR Paper II \u00b7 2025 \u00b7 15m<\/b>India maintains strong ties with countries that will assure a free and open Indo-Pacific and guarantee greater connectivity with rest of the world. Analyze.<a class=\"ans\" href=\"\/psir\/psir-pyq\/india-maintains-strong-ties-with-countries-that-will-assure-a-upsc-psir-2025-4909\/\">Answer<\/a><\/li>\n<li><b>PSIR Paper II \u00b7 2025 \u00b7 10m<\/b>Historical ties between India and Japan grew into a &#x27;special strategic and global partnership&#x27;. Comment.<a class=\"ans\" href=\"\/psir\/psir-pyq\/historical-ties-between-india-and-japan-grew-into-a-special-upsc-psir-2025-4609\/\">Answer<\/a><\/li>\n<li><b>PSIR Paper II \u00b7 2024 \u00b7 10m<\/b>Discuss the rationale behind replacing the &#x27;Asia-Pacific&#x27; strategy with the new term &#x27;Indo-Pacific&#x27; strategy.<a class=\"ans\" href=\"\/psir\/psir-pyq\/discuss-the-rationale-behind-replacing-the-asia--pacific-strategy-upsc-psir-2024-4509\/\">Answer<\/a><\/li>\n<li><b>GS-2 \u00b7 2024<\/b>Discuss the geopolitical and geostrategic importance of Maldives for India with a focus on global trade and energy flows. Further also discuss how this relationship affects India&#x27;s maritime security and regional stability amidst international competition?<\/li>\n<li><b>GS-2 \u00b7 2023<\/b>&#x27;Sea is an important Component of the Cosmos.&#x27; Discuss in the light of the above statement the role of the IMO (International Maritime Organization) in protecting environment and enhancing maritime safety and security.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/section>\n<div class=\"bf-foot\">A new brief on every working day. Facts and quotes are taken from the articles named above.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Heather A. Conley says American threats over Greenland could spoil the Arctic defence that the United States needs from its allies. Puspa Kumari shows India working with Afghanistan through farming while withholding recognition from the Taliban government. Philip Green counts what Australia and India signed when Narendra Modi went to Melbourne.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":689,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"fx_brief_v2":"1","fx_brief_issue":"103","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-685","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-psir-gs-2-daily-brief"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/WhatsApp-Image-2026-07-21-at-7.11.01-PM.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/685","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=685"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/685\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5106,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/685\/revisions\/5106"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/689"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=685"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=685"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=685"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}