Deal to see Indian defense spending soar India is beefing up its air defense capabilities with the procurement of 126 fighter jets in a deal believed to be worth close to US$10 billion. In the past three years, India spent as much as $10.5 billion on defense procurement and is expected to spend another $30 billion within the next five years on military hardware and software, making it the largest arms importer in the developing world. - Siddharth Srivastava Political obstacles on the road to riches A disused road built during World War II, running from India's northeast through Myanmar to southwestern China's Yunnan province, has the potential to pull the regions it connects out of poverty if the three countries reopen it for trade and travel. Although reconstruction work is well under way, political obstacles still have to be overcome before the Stilwell Road can be opened to transnational traffic. - Sudha Ramachandran Thailand holds Big Pharma's feet to the fire As debate rages on the advertising pages of Bangkok newspapers over Thailand's move to break patents on anti-AIDS drugs in the interest of public welfare, the country's health officials are steadfastly refusing to cave in to pressure from the pharmaceutical lobby and the US government to reverse the decision to secure cheaper access to medicines. Food security fears as China's farmland shrinks Because of rampant illegal development, China's arable land might soon drop below the "red line" of 120 million hectares, the amount needed to produce sufficient grain to feed the population.  Click here for  BUSINESS IN BRIEF  Economics  Infrastructure  Banking  Energy  IT  Autos  Telecoms  Aviation

US President George W Bush has ended his lengthy search for a “war czar” to carry out Iraq and Afghanistan policy. The appointment - still to be confirmed by the Senate - goes to Lt Gen Douglas Lute, an active duty three-star army general who evidently has changed his tune en route to being plucked from obscurity. “He said to me when he interviewed for this position, ‘Now, you need to understand that I was skeptical of the surge.' We developed a strategy that we thought answered [his] questions [whether Iraqi security forces would 'step up', and whether the Iraqi government was committed to political reconciliation] ... He’s saying that he supports the strategy, very clearly supports the strategy.” - National Security Adviser Stephen J Hadley, interviewed by the New York Times “You have a very competent person perhaps placed in an impossible job who almost certainly sees this as standing up to a duty which is anything but likely to be career enhancing.” - Military analyst Anthony H Cordesman, speaking to the New York Times about Lute's appointment

... The World Bank soap opera [regarding Paul Wolfowitz] may be viewed as the death throes of these historical institutions and of American hegemony in international finance. The emerging world of international finance will have major roles for China, Korea, India, Russia, the Middle East, and other large holders of trade credit ... Cha-am Jamal Thailand

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