When George W. Bush invaded Afghanistan in 2001, among the first weapon platforms that he moved was the warship USS Carl Vinson. Sending a warship to invade landlocked Afghanistan? To those uninitiated into maritime strategies, it would have sounded like an Iznogud misadventure. It wasn't.
Stationed majestically somewhere in the perennially troubled Persian Gulf, Carl Vinson sent Super Hornets and Tomcats in squadrons from her deck to pulverise the cities of Kabul, Herat and Mazar-e-Sherief. The precision bombs that those warjets dropped on the already scorched Afghan earth knocked offthe Taliban command and control systems, and sent their troops fleeing into the caves of the Tora Bora mountains. So much so, the Northern Alliance troops, who had been fighting the Taliban bravely but in vain for half a decade from the mountains of Panjsher, could walk into Kabul and occupy the city without having to fire a single shot.
That's an aircraft carrier. She (ships are female, even if named Vikramaditya, Carl Vinson, Admiral Gorshkov or Charles de Gaulle) is not just a weapon platform in the sea, but a repository of awesome power that can be projected to control and dominate thousands of square miles of the ocean surface and its deep fathoms, all the airspace over it, and hundreds of square miles of terra firma on the littoral and even interior.
Denne historien er fra August 28, 2022-utgaven av THE WEEK India.
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Denne historien er fra August 28, 2022-utgaven av THE WEEK India.
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A golden girl
One of India's most formidable beauties passed away earlier this month. The odd thing is she would absolutely hate this obituary; she hated being written about and avoided publicity for all of her nine decades. Indira Aswani was 93 when she died. But anyone who encountered her, even briefly, was in such awe of her grace and poise, and one could not but remember her forever.
The interest in wine is growing delightfully in India
The renowned British wine writer and television presenter Jancis Robinson, 74, recently came to Delhi and Mumbai to reacquaint herself with India's wine industry. This was the Robinson's fourth visit to India; the last one was seven years ago. On this trip, Robinson and her husband, restaurateur Nicholas Lander, were hosted by the Taj Hotels and Sonal Holland, India's only Master of Wine.
United in the states
Indian-Americans coming together under the Democratic umbrella could get Harris over the line in key battlegrounds
COVER DRIVE
Usage-driven motor insurance policies offer several benefits
GDP as the only measure of progress is illogical
Dasho Karma Ura, one of the world's leading happiness experts, has guided Bhutan's unique gross national happiness (GNH) project. He uses empirical data to show that money cannot buy happiness in all circumstances, rather it is family and health that have the strongest positive effect on happiness. Excerpts from an interview:
India is not a controlling big brother
Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay considers India a benevolent elder sibling as the \"big brotherly attitude\" is happily missing from bilateral ties. He thinks the relationship shared by the two countries has become a model of friendship not just for the region, but for the entire world. \"India's attitude is definitely not of a big brother who is controlling and does not allow the little brother to blossom and grow,\" says Tobgay in an exclusive interview with THE WEEK.
Comrade with no foes
Lal Salaam, Comrade Yechury-you were quite a guy!
Pinning down saffron
In her first political bout, Vinesh Phogat rides on the anti-BJP sentiment across Haryana
MAKE IN MANIPUR
Home-made rockets and weapons from across the border are escalating the conflict
SAHEB LOSES STEAM
Coalition dynamics and poor electoral prospects continue to diminish Ajit Pawar's political stock