of the Day

Articles
by: Dr. PIYUSH CHAUBEY

26th December 2023

Stabilising frayed ties, yet hurdles ahead by Manoj joshi

(GS Paper II & PSIR Paper II India and Global Centers of Power)
The article discusses the U.S.-China relationship in the context of recent developments.
After the meeting between United States President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping,

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in November, the U.S and China have managed to stabilize their relationship from the free fall it

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was in through 2023, beginning with the spy balloon episode.
 One sign of the efforts to manage the relationship without confrontation was visible in the recent virtual
meeting between their top military officials, General Charles Q. Brown, and General Liu Zhenli.
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13 elections in Taiwan.
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A big challenge could arise almost immediately into the new year arising from the January
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 The candidate of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, Lai Ching-te is leading at the polls,
something that China has made clear it does not particularly like.
 Another issue that will play out in the year is ever-tightening U.S. restrictions on technology
export, especially that of semiconductors to China.
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 The Chinese Embassy in Washington protested noting that the U.S. had “been stretching the
concept of national security, abusing export control measures, engaging in discriminatory and
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unfair treatment against enterprises of other countries, and politicizing and weaponizing economic
and sci-tech issues”.
 The Biden Administration issued an update to its existing restrictions on exporting advanced
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Artificial Intelligence (AI) to China and other countries.

 The move was aimed at preventing China from acquiring cutting-edge chips to develop AI
technologies such as large language models that power applications such as ChatGPT.
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 In retaliation, Beijing exercised its lever as the supplier of rare earth metals needed for chip
production.
 China placed restrictions on some gallium and germanium products.
 In December, restrictions were placed on several types of graphites and a ban imposed on
the export of technology for making rare earth magnets and technologies for extracting and
separating rare earths.
 China is the world’s top processor of rare earths, accounting for 70% of the world’s production.
The potential impact of the U.S. presidential elections on these relations. It mentions the policies of
both President Biden and the possibility of Donald Trump’s re-election. Additionally, it touches upon
various aspects of U.S.-China competition, including alliances, tensions in the South China Sea, and the
goal of preventing misunderstandings and escalation.
https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/stabilising-frayed-ties-yet-hurdles-ahead/article67674247.
ece#:~:text=After%20the%20meeting%20between%20United,with%20the%20spy%20balloon%20
episode.

https://www.instagram.com/psir_by_piyush.chaubey/ https://t.me/piyush_choubey https://piyushchaubey.com

We want a Digital India. Just not the one we are living in by. Mishi Choudhary

(GS Paper II Digital Infrastructure)

The article highlights the growing challenges of data breaches and the need for a comprehensive
cybersecurity strategy in India to protect citizens’ sensitive information and digital infrastructure.
 In October, Resecurity, a U.S. company, revealed a significant data leak on the dark web, comprising
personally identifiable information (PII) of approximately 815 million Indian citizens. This data
included sensitive information such as names, phone numbers, Aadhaar numbers, passport numbers,
and addresses.
 The theft of such sensitive information poses a serious threat as it can be used for various
fraudulent activities, including identity theft, tax fraud, online banking theft, and other
financially motivated scams. This has led to a rise in cyber fraud cases in India, causing significant
financial losses and harm to individuals.
 The article criticizes the Indian government for its inadequate response to data breaches and its
absence of a long-term cybersecurity strategy.

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It contrasts this with the U.S., where incident response strategies and tactics have been effective

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in mitigating data breach impacts.
 The concerns related to Aadhaar, the Indian biometric identification system, and its mandatory use

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for various services. It argues that making Aadhaar registration mandatory exposes citizens to
the risk of data breaches and privacy violations.
 The recently introduced Data Protection Act in India is criticized for not addressing sensitive
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health information and granting exemptions to the government regarding data retention
and erasure. Greater transparency and accountability are needed in digital infrastructure.
 Several recommendations for the Indian government to improve cybersecurity, including
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prioritizing prevention, detection, assessment, and remediation of cyber incidents,

establishing a cyber security board, adopting a zero-trust architecture, and involving both
government and private sector stakeholders.
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 The importance of putting citizens at the center of cybersecurity policies, ensuring prompt
information, protection, and support in the event of cyber incidents.
https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/cyber-security-cyber-frauds-in-india-digital-india-
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data-protection-bill-9082569/
Dr

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https://www.instagram.com/psir_by_piyush.chaubey/ https://t.me/piyush_choubey https://piyushchaubey.com