Maritime Studies

The Maritime Policy Initiative is an initiative under Strategic Studies Programme focusing on strategic and security oriented questions in the maritime domain.

 As a maritime turn appears to be underway in global geopolitics, growing focus by stakeholders on oceanic spaces has emerged as imperative. With countries increasingly focusing on the maritime domain, the global maritime architecture is increasingly being subjected to growing strategic attention. The salience being accorded to the maritime domain entails some critical issues bordering on maritime affairs merit greater attention. Importantly, the very nature of the maritime domain throws up critical intersections with other broad strategic areas and issues such as Small and Developing Island States (SIDS), geopolitics of Polar Regions and Outer-Space, naval weaponry and modernization, etc.

 Key Areas of Research: 

The key themes guiding the research of this initiative are: Maritime Security; Maritime Governance; Oceanic Regionalism; Blue Economy, Trade, and Connectivity. 

The vital geographies at the center of focus for the initiative are: Indian Ocean Region (including Bay of Bengal, Western Indian Ocean, Eastern Indian Ocean, Southern Indian Ocean); the wider Indo-Pacific; South China Sea, Western Pacific, maritime Euro-Atlantic; Arctic, and Antarctica.