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While the Modi government secured some notable gains during its time in office thus far, challenges lie ahead this year and beyond.

India’s back-to-back moves to boost relations with Japan and Russia, particularly in security matters, appear to indicate it wants a bigger naval role in the contested South China Sea to counter a rising China. The reality is far different

Realities in the Indo-Pacific region have changed, and it’s time for New Delhi to deepen its political ties with Taipei.

The Canadian government, instead of robustly standing up to extremism, has found it easier to pander to some of the most violent and aggressive groups. This is partly because of how these extremist groups have increased their influence over state institutions

Indonesia’s upcoming general elections will see a rematch between incumbent President Joko Widodo (commonly called ‘Jokowi’) and his long-time rival, retired lieutenant general Prabowo Subianto. This paper examines the potential impact of the elections on Indonesia’s foreign policy, especially on the country’s maritime relations with India and other major powers. In the 2014 elections, the Visi-Misi (or election manifesto) of the incumb

India & China want things to stabilise, but we aren’t close to achieving status quo ante of April in eastern Ladakh.

Whether South Korea builds a nuclear bomb on its own or not, nuclear weapons are gaining greater importance in the national security thinking of many states in the Indo-Pacific.

Trump’s “toned down” stance on the South China Sea issue, his emphasis on “America first” policy and his soft attitude towards China have made many Japanese leaders suspect that the US is retreating from Asia.

While New Delhi’s desire to cultivate closer defense ties with Tokyo is clear, its overall strategic approach is much less so.

Increasingly, many countries that have traditionally maintained a defensive and pacifist posture, like Japan, are having to reconsider their options.

The visit of America’s Defence Secretary earlier in June has prepared the ground for the the Indian Prime Minister’s U.S. visit next week, which could see some big ticket announcements

New Delhi has  geopolitical opportunities in China rethinks underway in Germany and other countries

India and Japan’s shared concerns about China are a key driver of their growing relationship.

For Brazil, there are multiple opportunities within BRICS, not limited to the economic sphere. In many ways, the grouping brings Brazil from the left corner of the world map to the center, where the geopolitical theatre is most active; in Asia and the Indo-Pacific.

France and India have shared a common belief in the importance of multilateralism and have a common respect for international rules and regulations. These shared beliefs can form the basis for a cooperation agenda.

How have nuclear weapons affected Indian foreign policy? Has India been able to leverage its status as a nuclear weapons state to further its foreign policy objectives? This issue brief examines these questions by first analysing how India’s foreign policy objectives have been affected by its possession of nuclear weapons. It then posits two strategies that India can pursue to leverage its status as a nuclear weapons state. The first strategy d

Growing economic protectionism and recurrent geo-economic and geo-political tensions in recent years are testing the resilience of the global economic order. Erstwhile proponents of globalisation such as the United States and the European Union are themselves recoiling from the global value chains that are over-reliant on China. As the localisation of goods and services has become more critical, it calls to question the viability of a globalised

China’s failure to condemn the Ukraine war raised concerns on the future of the rules-based international order not only in the European Union (EU), but also in India and Taiwan. While their respective relationships with China and Russia are characterised by different complexities, the EU, India, and Taiwan are all vulnerable to authoritarian threats. All three recognise that China’s continued rise will have strategic implications for

Despite last year’s quadrilateral Malabar exercises and the recent announcement of new working groups, Quad cooperation on naval interoperability, critical technologies, and Covid-19 had been manifest previously.

As the Indo-Pacific region becomes an arena of strategic contestations, India and Australia’s interests are converging. Two large maritime states from two different continents, India and Australia were mutually indifferent for a long time. Today, however, their relationship is on the upbeat: not only is their bilateral trade on the rise, but they also have common concerns to balance an assertive China and uphold order in the region. By year-end

Macron has raised doubts about how serious France is when it comes to managing the negative externalities of China’s rise.

France has begun to pay serious attention to the Indo-Pacific region after a long time.

India’s plan for naval coalition building alone will not credibly deter China’s military power in the Indian Ocean

India has been understanding of the Maldivian government’s new policy, but it expects the island nation to respect Indian sensitivities and equally uphold its commitment to bilateral ties

New entrants in the Indo-Pacific offer both opportunities and challenges for outer space.

The US has provided financial and military support to Ukraine since 2014, when Russia took control of Crimea, and more firmly since February 2022, when the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war began. Indeed, US military, political, and strategic support to Ukraine is crucial to Kyiv as the conflict continues. For the Biden administration, aid to Ukraine is a vital principle on which his party politics hinges; it is a critical pathway to rebuild transatlant

India’s geography lends itself favourably to the cultivation and expansion of maritime ties. Yet, for much of the country’s contemporary history, the country has overlooked these opportunities. As the world reengages with its vast ocean spaces, India too, has become more willing and capable of participating in the maritime domain. This paper outlines the evolution of the country’s maritime outlook as it shifts its largely continental-orient

The Indo-Pacific, often regarded as the ‘maritime underbelly’ of Asia, has emerged as the world’s economic “centre of gravity”. The home of vast geo-economic opportunities, and facing manifold security challenges at the same time, this maritime domain has attracted the keen attention of global powers in recent years. This births prospects for multilateral collaborations in maritime security, and justifies the significance of a �

There is merit in collaborating with Indo-Pacific partners in the islands, but it will entail information-sharing too

New Delhi’s approach to Southeast Asia within the wider Indo-Pacific region is strategically sound but has limits.

No longer just a balancer, the prime minister wants to make India a major power in its own right. And his cabinet pick shows he’s serious about doing so.

Other than neighbouring countries, any future Indian government's principal focus will be on the vast swathe that begins in Sri Lanka and ends in Sydney, and can be described under a variety of rubrics: Look East, Indian Ocean Region, the Indo-Pacific. Countries such as Japan, Indonesia and Singapore present India big windows as it strives to become an economic and maritime power.

Canberra and New Delhi look at each other as vital partners playing critical roles in maintaining peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific.

How can Asia’s democracies bring the Indo-Pacific to life?

As India reconfigures its China policy with the Indo-Pacific at its core, India-Russia ties won’t be able to escape this strategic reality

Our 20 most–read commentaries this year.

The India-Japan partnership has matured into an important component of the new security and economic architecture of the Indo-Pacific region. For a long time, the partnership was centered on economic matters. But it has diversified to cover a wide spectrum of interests including security, counter terrorism, sea-lanes, UN reforms, energy security and climate change.